Amid an electric true freshman season, Alabama football budding superstar wide receiver Ryan Williams got that bag by signing a NIL deal with Uber Eats, per a recent social media post and report from On3.

In a recent long-winded rant, former Alabama football quarterback A.J. McCarron lambasted this new NIL era.

“Everybody worried about f***ing TikTok and having a reel and being on highlights for their personal self and personal gain, and how much money they can get from NIL,” McCarron said. “We just didn't have that s*** back then. It was a team sport. You came together as a team because you had one common goal, because you knew that's how you were going to make your money, was by winning. Winning attracts people to that program, it attracts scouts, it attracts GMs, it attracts ownership to allow yourself that opportunity to go make yourself a lot of money and change your family tree for a long period of time.

“You can just tell. It's not the same. I would think Bama fans should get used to that in a way of, hey, it's not gonna be what you knew from 2008 up until last year where there was just a certain standard. That's not a knock on the coaching staff or a knock on anybody. It's just a different era. I think it's something that they're going to have to buckle up if they're not ready for it.”

The Crimson Tide wideout has 35 receptions for 702 yards and seven touchdowns this season.

No. 14 Alabama football travels to Baton Rouge after a bye this week to play LSU on Saturday, November 9, at 7:30 p.m. EST.

Alabama football still well in the College Football Playoff mix

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Typically, a two-loss SEC team would unlikely qualify for the CFP, but with the 12-team expansion, we could see as many as five teams from the powerhouse conference, Alabama football included.

The Crimson Tide looked reinvigorated in their recent dismantling of the Missouri Tigers. The win was the team's first SEC shutout since 2020. Head coach Kalen DeBoer believes the defense is coming into its own with an attacking mindset.

“They’re hunting it. They’re anticipating it a little bit,” DeBoer said. “A little bit more of an attacking mindset, not so much on their heels. Wanted them to really get that shutout there.”

Alabama limited Missouri to only 72 passing yards, and Tigers quarterback Drew Pyne threw three interceptions. Meanwhile, the Crimson Tide totaled 271 yards on the ground with four rushing touchdowns.

In his last College Football Power Rankings, ClutchPoints' Shane Shoemaker had the Crimson Tide slotted at No. 17. Although that list came out before Alabama's shutout win against Missouri.