Caleb Williams sounds off on idea fans drove him away from Oklahoma

Being a high-profile quarterback in college football in the social media age can have plenty of perks, but plenty of drawbacks as well. Former Oklahoma star quarterback Caleb Williams found that out quickly after he made the jump from Oklahoma to USC via the transfer portal this offseason. On Sunday afternoon, he decided to let everyone know on Twitter that the Sooner fans and his old teammates weren’t the reason he decided to leave Oklahoma.

Wanna take this done? The fans and my old teammates are the reason on y I almost stayed! https://t.co/D765HZD0W6

— Caleb Williams (@CALEBcsw) July 17, 2022

He later corrected his message, tweeting “Down*”, meaning he meant to type, “Wanna take this down?”

On3’s JD PicKell talks about reasonable expectations for Williams and the USC Trojans this fall

USC’s offseason led to a complete power shift in college football. The addition of new head coach Lincoln Riley and the acquisition of talent from the transfer portal in players like quarterback Caleb Williams and wide receiver Jordan Addison flipped the script on the Trojans expectations this year.

On3’s JD PicKell recently let everyone know it’s time to pump the brakes a bit on their sky-high expectations for the Trojans heading into the 2022-2023 season. “(You have) a lot of people clamoring for the College Football Playoff. I’m here to say let’s pump the breaks for a half a second,” said PicKell. “The College Football Playoff would be amazing. I think it’s attainable in years to come with Caleb Williams and Lincoln Riley continuing their marriage, but in this coming season?”

PicKell notes the offensive firepower that USC will bring to the table. Riley’s Oklahoma teams lit up the scoreboard with an average of 43.5 points per game over five seasons in Norman. Williams, Riley’s last signal caller at OU, will be key in carrying that offensive success over. Adding in the 2021 Biletnikoff Award winner Addison along with weapons like Mario Williams and Travis Dye should help keep the scoring just as potent.

Although explosive on paper, PicKell believes their focus should first and foremost be on Pac-12 success. The current wide-open nature of the conference leaves a spot ripe for the Trojan’s taking. While they’ll have their opportunity for national success, PicKell thinks this is their best path for first-year success.

“If USC could win the Pac-12, that would be phenomenal. I also think it’s very doable for where the conference is right now. It’s not really deep. USC has a super loaded roster, especially on offense. If they can put it together and win the Pac-12, that would be a great season for USC,” he said. “It’s not playoff or bust, but (USC fans) should be excited about this coming football season.”

If the Trojans were to win the conference, that very well may put them in playoff contention anyway. While the confidence in the new-look USC is through the roof, your regular season and conference slates come before any trophies are handed out. Lincoln Riley will have a prosperous first season in PicKell’s eyes if they can handle that first.

That tour towards the top of the Pac-12 will start on September 3rd when they open the season against the Rice Owls.

On3’s Sam Gillenwater also contributed to this article.