Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams is facing difficulty establishing a rhythm in the season opener against the East Carolina Pirates. Coleman-Williams was Alabama's No. 1 returning receiver and a preseason first-team All-SEC selection, after recording 49 catches for 689 yards and four TDs in 2025.
In the first quarter with 5:30 remaining, Coleman-Williams dropped a wide-open pass that could have landed Alabama deep into ECU territory. It seems the drop issues from last year have followed him into the new season, and going gloveless may not be helping that much.
The drop immediately drew criticism from Alabama fans.
"Ryan Coleman – Williams still can't catch," one fan wrote.
"I can't believe he was in Jeremiah talks his freshman year," one fan reacted.
"Generational Aura loss; he was the greatest thing since sliced bread after that UGA game and has done absolutely nothing since," one fan reacted.
"Boy can't even catch a cold if he wanted😂😂🤦🏾♂️🤦🏾♂️🤦🏾♂️," one fan wrote.
"He done it twice. Just got bailed out by a penalty," another wrote.
Ryan Coleman-Williams has decided to drop his gloves for the 2026 season. He was without gloves in the season opener against East Carolina. He wore gloves during his first two seasons, but had played his entire life without them anyway.
Right ahead of the season, when reporters asked whether he would wear gloves this season, his answer was simply "Nah." He also mentioned that the decision had nothing to do with last year's struggles.
"Nothing," Coleman-Williams said . "Just playing football. With gloves or without gloves, it doesn't really matter. It's just playing football."
Despite that, the decision led many to believe that it could be about his drops issue from last year. Coleman-Williams' drop rate climbed to 16.9%, which was one of the highest among qualifying FBS receivers.
Earlier at the SEC Media Days, Coleman-Williams acknowledged his drop issue and said he was already working to correct it.
"Taking all the responsibility head-on from last year with the drops," Coleman-Williams said . "It's more than your hands alone. It's a lot mental. Just having that confidence that I'm capable of. I've been doing it my entire life. Doing more JUGS. You can never catch too many JUGS."
To rectify this persistent issue, the Crimson Tide wide receiver revealed working the JUGS machine every day.
However, the early results show not a lot of improvement on that front.
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