Crimson Tide wide receiver Ryan Williams is not just an elite athlete with an NIL valuation of $1.7 million, but also a budding entrepreneur. He has several side hustles aside from playing football for Alabama, as he also has his podcast and some brand deals on the side.
This entrepreneurial side of Ryan Williams is front and center for Forbes magazine’s latest piece, with the Alabama star sitting down with the magazine’s DJ Siddiqi. In a post on his “New Wave” podcast’s Instagram account, shouting out his mom, the wide receiver shared a photo from the article, as well as an excerpt.
“Mama, I made it to Forbes 🔥 Thank you @forbes for interviewing me!” Ryan Williams wrote.
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In that excerpt, Williams talked about his brand deals with Fortnite, EA Sports, Wingstop, Uber, Nascar, and Hollister. He also talked about how he got to start his “New Wave” podcast that mostly focuses on Alabama football. The University of Alabama itself helps him produce the show, which he co-hosts with CB Jaylen Mbakwe.
“I remember Coach Saban, when he was here, one of the first things that I asked him after I committed – because I committed my freshman year in high school to Alabama – I was like, ‘Hey, will I have an opportunity to express myself, can I do a podcast or something like that?’ He was like, ‘Yeah, we have the opportunity with all the support that we have here at Alabama,” Williams said.
According to Forbes, the podcast now has over 60,000 subscribers across multiple social media platforms.
Ryan Williams talks about being on the cover of ‘EA Sports NCAA Football 26’
Ryan Williams has been growing his brand since he got to Alabama, with the school fully supporting him. This includes his NIL deal with EA Sports, where he is one of two wide receivers to grace the cover of EA Sports NCAA Football 26, the other being Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith. He spoke about the honor of being an EA cover athlete:
“As a kid playing NCAA, I remember NCAA 14 being the last one and I was hurt. Before I came to school, I bought an Xbox 360 just so I could buy NCAA 14 so I could keep playing it until ’25 came out. It’s crazy,” Ryan Williams said.
The Crimson Tide wide receiver has been seen working out with Super Bowl champion DeVonta Smith of the Philadelphia Eagles, an Alabama alum. He has been working on strengthening, bulking up, and getting better ahead of his sophomore season at Bama.
Related: $2.7M NIL-Valued Ryan Williams Reveals First Thing He Asked Nick Saban Post Recruitment
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