BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Ryan Williams went to the Iron Bowl last year.

He'll be at the rivalry game again this season, but this time it's on the home turf for Hugh Freeze and the Auburn Tigers. The elite wide receiver will be one of the top guys on a lengthy list of impressive visitors, and the Alabama commit knows just how much this game means to both teams.

"It’s the Iron Bowl," Williams said. "Even if one team is 2-7 and the other one is 10-0, it doesn’t matter. It’s still the Iron Bowl, it’s always gonna be a great game, so I’m just excited to see it on the Plains."

He saw the Crimson Tide win 49-27 last season in Tuscaloosa. Now he'll get a chance to watch it in Jordan Hare Stadium, where he's excited to see the atmosphere once again.

"Just to see how hard the fans come out," Williams said on what excites him most. "This year is their building year I guess you could say. The fans, every game that I went to, they showed out. I definitely want to see how they show out against a talented team like Alabama."

It's a busy time of the year for Williams, who's juggling a schedule of schoolwork, recruitment and practice. Saraland advanced to the third round of the 6A playoffs with a 51-14 victory over Briarwood Christian last Friday.

"I’m just glad we came out with the win," Williams said. "We’re ready to get to work on Thanksgiving week. We definitely appreciate the honor to play next week."

Williams remains "locked in" with the Crimson Tide and was in Alabama for the game against Chattanooga. He's still hearing from Auburn, USC, Georgia and LSU and the chatter is that Williams could end up reclassifying into the 2024 class.

If that were to happen, Williams wouldn't sign until February, allowing him to take official visits in January.

His relationship continues to grow with Auburn wide receivers' coach Marcus Davis and the two talk regularly. Auburn remains optimistic and heavily in pursuit of Williams, hoping that it can add the top-five player to either its 2024 or 2025 class.

Regardless, Williams feels like Auburn is on the right path for success.

"I definitely see them building for the next two to three years," Williams said. "I definitely think they’re gonna be a talented team to have the potential chance to win the SEC at one point."