Oklahoma football: Caleb Williams National Freshman of Year semifinalist
By Chip Rouse
Oklahoma football quarterback Caleb Williams, who replaced Spencer Rattler at quarterback for the Sooners midway through the season, is a semifinalist for the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award.
Williams, the consensus No. 1 quarterback in the 2021 class, is one of 14 players named as semifinalists for the national award sponsored by the Maxwell Football Club.
The Sooner true freshman QB started the final six games of the regular season. He completed 62.5 percent of his passes (115 of 184) for 1,670 yards and 18 touchdowns with four interceptions.
Williams starred with his legs and his arm after becoming the Sooner starting quarterback. In addition to delivering 18 passing touchdowns, he toted the ball 72 times for 408 additional yards and six touchdowns.
Williams running plays accounted for six of the nine longest Oklahoma rushing yards from scrimmage. He had a 74-yard run for a touchdown against Iowa State, a 66-yard run for a touchdown against Texas, in addition to 59, 56, 41 and 40-yard runs.
The best game of the year for the OU true freshman was a 52-21 win against Texas Tech. In that game Williams completed 77 percent of his pass attempts (23 of 30) for 402 yards and six touchdown passes. He became only the third Oklahoma player to throw six touchdowns in a game.
This is the fourth year for the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award, which is named after the former standout running back for the University of Alabama and the Seattle Seahawks of the NFL.
Three finalists for the award will be announced on Dec. 21, and the winner will be revealed on Jan. 10