Nohl Williams, CB, California
Size:
Height: 6003
Weight: 199
Arm: 30 ¾”
Hand: 9”
Accomplishments:
First Team All-ACC (2024) • All-Mountain West Conference Honorable Mention (2022) • Three-star recruit
“Nohl Williams is a highly competitive and physical corner who won’t back down to any receiver.”
Strengths:
Man coverage
Jam timing
Staying connected
Physicality
Ball skills
Concerns:
Bouncy feet
Hips declare early
Late on inside quick release
Film Analysis:
A former two-sport athlete and three-star recruit at Pacifica High School in Oxnard, California, Nohl Williams was a standout on the football field playing defensive back, wide receiver, safety, and punt returner. Finished his senior year with a career-high 74 tackles (35 solo) and seven interceptions en route to a Southern Section championship and first CIF state championship. Coming off that high, Williams committed to UNLV where he racked up 98 tackles (65 solo), five interceptions, and 15 passes defensed in three seasons for the Rebels. From there he transferred to Cal and finished the final two seasons of his collegiate career on a high note with 105 tackles (69 solo), nine interceptions and 23 passes defensed, earning All-American honors in his final season.
Williams is one of the most competitive defensive backs in the country with his natural feel and physicality at the line of scrimmage in press coverage or against blocks. Willing to bully any wide receiver, Williams comes downhill against the run or receiver screens with authority to make the play but can be too aggressive at times and fall off tackles. Before the snap, he likes to challenge the receiver with games, changing his stance up to keep them guessing. He’s a good athlete who can flip his hips well when his feet are working with him. However, he tends to bounce around in the early stages of coverage and that can put him behind the eight ball when changing direction. Williams is at home in man coverage where his talent to stay in the receiver's hip pocket shines and he can read their movements quickly. He uses timely punches in press coverage to throw off the timing of the receiver and dictate the terms to anyone he’s up against.
He’s got good burst to close space when separation is created and the deep speed to carry downfield but is susceptible to quick inside releases across his face on drag routes and glance routes due to his reaction time. He tends to open his hips to declare his intentions early which gives crafty receivers the edge with nuanced routes and quick breaks at the top of the route. In zone coverage, Williams can be indecisive with his depth and reading the quarterback’s eyes but communicates well.
His production speaks for itself and when it comes to ball skills, his instincts are stellar. When targeted, he locates the football quickly and if he can’t get two hands on it, he finds a way to knock it down. He understands angles well whether it’s in recovery to get back in phase with a receiver or downhill in the run game.
Williams is going to bring physicality and competitive mentality wherever he goes and his experience on special teams and as a punt returner give him a good floor as a roster contributor with the upside to be a good starter in a press-man/Cover 2 defensive system.
Prospect Projection: Day 2 — Adequate Starter
Written By: Daniel Harms
Exposures: UNLV (2024), Miami (2024), Pittsburgh (2024), SMU (2024)
