Riley Williams, nation's No. 2 tight end, commits to Miami Hurricanes over Alabama, Ohio State

For more than a year, recent IMG Academy (Florida) transfer Riley Williams, the nation's No. 2 tight end, was thought to be a near-lock to choose the Oregon Ducks.

The 6-foot-6, 230-pound pass-catcher has two uncles who played for Oregon and his older brother, Korbin Williams, is a wide receiver for the Ducks.

But Williams recently eliminated Oregon and narrowed his list to three - Alabama, Ohio State and Miami.

Again, initially it looked like Alabama may have the inside track.

Miami coach Mario Cristobal got the last official visit, however.

And it proved to be a game-changer.

On Friday, Williams announced his commitment to the Hurricanes.

"I'm going to Miami," he said. "They just checked off everything I was looking for, in terms of in and out of football. It's hard to beat Miami, in the sense of the city. It's Miami. There's so much stuff going on and so many things to do. You'll never get bored."

"In terms of football, the familiarity with coach Cristobal and the entire staff was huge. I'd been there two times prior to my official visit, and that third visit they showed me what a true family really was."

Cristobal's departure to Miami really opened the door for the Hurricanes, as the Williams family had first-hand experience and comfort with their older son having played in his program in Eugene. 

"Family trust came in a lot," Williams said. "I asked my brother about his time at Oregon playing under coach Cristobal. From what he was telling me he's a great guy. I already knew that, but to ask someone who played under him for the reassurance played a big role." 

Williams recently transferred to IMG Academy, which provided benefits on multiple levels, including enabling him to enroll early at Miami.

"The ultimate decision for me to end up going there was the competition. I get to play against the top teams in the nation, but also practice against the top players in the nation every day to get better," he said, "Early enrollment was also huge. Sadly, Central Catholic (Oregon) doesn't allow students to graduate early. Being able to go to a school and graduate early to get those months of workouts in before those other recruits come in is awesome." 

Williams' commitment marks the fourth major addition for Miami in the past week, joining five-star quarterback Jaden Rashada (California; Pittsburg), four-star wide receiver Nathaniel Joseph (Florida; Edison) and four-star athlete Robert Stafford (Florida; Eau Gallie). 

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