cfb zeitgeistZeitgeist
OFFSEASON · SUMMER 2026 · COMMITMENT SEASON
Heisman / Players / BJ Williams /Wake Forest

BJ Williams

DL · Wake Forest · Sr · #18

Below the discourse floor — the honest stats-only state.

3 TACKLES · 0 SACKS

2026 RETURNINGReturning to Wake Forest for 2026

2026 Outlook

Returning to Wake Forest for 2026

2026 Depth chart

Projected starter

Defensive line · Wake Forest

Returning around him

  • 26% of 2024 offensive production back (Heavy turnover)
  • 2 Wake Forest players drafted to NFL
  • Transfer portal: +1 net (24 in / 23 out)

2026 Award watch

No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)

Wake Forest · Last season: 9-4 · Talent rank #74 · 2026 recruiting class #63

DL · WAKE FOREST · ACC

BJ Williams

  • 4
  • #18
  • 6-4 | 273 lb
  • Johnston, SC

CFB Zeitgeist Score

18

Below cohort in the position cohort. Carried by qb hurries at the 55th percentile.

Heisman Heat

#14015

<1% win probability

Fan Belief

Awaiting

Player-specific FI not yet ingested. Falls back to team mood below.

Respect Gap

Awaiting

Coming online with player-level FI.

Reality Gap

Awaiting

Coming online with player-level FI.

ACCOLADE PROBABILITY

Heisman

<1%

TOP DEFENSE AWARD

Nagurski

CONSENSUS

All-American

Player Standing · 17 rungs

Tier 1 · 2-deep

R04 · Rotational

Rotational. Earning real snaps in the rotation.

Not on team2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex

Career Arc

HS
Recruit
★★★
#1344 national
CFB
College
Wake Forest
2022–2025
NFL
NFL Draft
Not drafted (yet)

Heisman futures · live sportsbook odds

#21 in market ▼ from #18 · 6 books

+35002.8% implied▼ lengthened from +3000

Identity & Role

The durable bio layer: position, size, hometown, and roster role.

PositionDL
Class4
Jersey18
Measurements6-4 | 273 lb
HometownJohnston, SC
Primary teamWake Forest

Recruiting Pedigree

How big the prospect was before college, and whether the later career arc beat that expectation.

Top pedigree 3-star No. 1238 recruit
Composite rating 0.8558 HighSchool
Signed with -- 2023
Origin Creekside Fairburn, GA, USA
Class Profile Context
2023 3-star | 0.8558 No. 1238 recruit | HighSchool
2021 3-star | 0.8444 No. 1344 recruit | HighSchool | Wake Forest

Transfer Arc

Portal movement changes role, context, and perception. This keeps that path in one place.

Portal moves 0 No portal entry on file
Latest destination -- --
Transfer stars -- CFBD transfer rating context
Eligibility -- Transfer date TBD
Season Move Context
No transfer portal moves on file for this player.

Heisman Lens · 2024 Season · Final

Where the player landed at the end of the listed season — final nowcast rank, win/finalist/ballot probabilities, and the cleanest official Heisman placement on file.

HIGH CONFIDENCE· through week 16
Current nowcast#14015Latest modeled ballot order
Season forecast#14156Where the full season sim points
Win probability0.0%Chance to actually win the trophy
Finalist probability0.0%Chance to make the finalist tier
Ballot probability0.0%Chance to appear anywhere on a ballot
Best official finish--Best completed Heisman placement on file

Heisman Futures

Not yet listed on major futures markets.

No achievements unlocked yet this season.

Selector Grid · 2025

AP
FWAA
AFCA
WCFF
SN
SI

Selector recognition fills in once the major honors lists (AP, FWAA, AFCA, Walter Camp, Sporting News, SI) are scraped and ingested.

NIL · Recruiting · NFL Draft

Market value, pedigree & pro outcome

Recruit stars

★★★☆☆

to —

Composite

0.8558

#1238 national

Today’s Hot-Take

The Hot-Take engine fires when this player’s percentile profile crosses a defensible threshold (top 10% in a cohort, 100+ snap sample). When it’s quiet, the model is honoring its “must be defensible” rule.

Anti-Take

PENDING

The contrarian read fires when the rules-engine detects a stat that complicates the Hot-Take. Quiet here means the model hasn’t found a defensible counter yet — not that one doesn’t exist.

The Room on BJ Williams

Fan sentiment · Awaiting signal

The Room reads fan conversation around a player — who’s talking, what they believe, and how that shifts. It publishes once weekly volume rebuilds; for most players that’s in-season, when game-week chatter spikes.

Cohort divergence map

Cohort divergence reads how different fanbases talk about this player. Returns once weekly mentions clear the publish floor.

Rival Radar

How rival fanbases talk about BJ Williams

No rival-bucket mentions in the current season.

Signature Story

Awaiting candidate metric

He hasn't written his page yet — we'll start filling it in when there are enough snaps to rank against his peers.

Signature Moment

No signature moment on the ledger yet.

Returns once this player puts together a multi-game body of work — single-game flashes alone don't clear the bar.

A 3-act season arc returns once this player has six or more games on the ledger.

Season Pace · Projection

Where the defensive totals stand

projecting to 13-game
Through 4g
3Tackles
0Tackles for loss
0Sacks
Per game
1Tackles
0Tackles for loss
0Sacks
Projected (13g)
10Tackles
0Tackles for loss
0Sacks

To hit 80-tackle season (currently 3): needs 8.6/game over remaining 9.

To hit 100-tackle season (currently 3): needs 10.8/game over remaining 9.

To hit 6-sack season (currently 0): needs 0.7/game over remaining 9.

To hit 10-sack season (currently 0): needs 1.1/game over remaining 9.

Why this is a rare defensive case

The fast read on the thing that makes this player more than a generic stat line.

BJ Williams is trying to climb the steepest award hill in college football: a defensive candidacy. The hook is the disruption profile on Wake Forest's defense, with 0.0 sacks, 0.0 tackles for loss, and -- interceptions through the current loaded season. For a defender, the question is never just production; it is whether elite disruption and team context can become nationally undeniable.

Current place #14015 0.0% win | 0.0% finalist
Role load -- Role share still loading
Profile quirk Defensive rarity 0.0 sacks | 0.0 TFL

2025 Season · Final

Traditional stats first. Advanced context underneath.

Last season

DEF season snapshot

2025 season snapshot | final

2025 season snapshot | finalData: CFBD player stats + local Heisman modelPeer context: same position + same level
Total tackles 3 1 solo | #3908/4942 (21st pct)
TFL 0.0 Backfield disruption | #3020/4972 (39th pct)
Sacks 0.0 Pass-rush finish | #1762/4972 (65th pct)
Player identity What kind of player is this?

30-second read

What kind of player is this?

Defensive contributor against FBS defenders.

Balanced profile

2025 Season · Final

2025 season snapshot | final

Tackling & Disruption

TOT
3 21st
SOLO
1 13th
TFL
0.0 39th
SACK
0.0 65th
QBH
1 44th

Game Log · Week-by-week

2025 season · 4 games

Box score · CFBD
WkOppTKLSOLOTFLSACKINTPDNote
Wk 1W 10-9vs Kennesaw State100.00.00Season-high 1 tackles
Wk 2W 42-10vs Western Carolina000.00.00
Wk 3L 24-34vs NC State110.00.00
Wk 13W 52-14vs Delaware100.00.00
Total310.00.00
Season-by-season tables Career rows + per-season box score

Traditional history

Traditional Stats

Season rows up top, career context at the bottom.

Season rows Career row

Season context · Team result + system

2022Wake Forest8-5HC: Dave Clawson · Balanced
2023Wake Forest4-8HC: Dave Clawson · Run-leaning
2025Wake Forest9-4HC: Jake Dickert · Balanced
SeasonTeam
2025Wake Forest310.00.0------
2023Wake Forest1130.00.01----
2022Wake Forest3--0.00.0------
Career3 loaded seasons1740.00.01----
Advanced layer Usage, value, and context

Advanced metrics second

Advanced Metrics

Usage, value, and opponent-adjusted context.

Usage Value Context
Disruption stats

TFL, sacks, and QB hurries are grouped together because defensive Heisman cases are usually built on visible havoc, not on tackle counts alone.

Coverage splash

Pass breakups, interceptions, and forced fumbles matter because national awards voters respond to plays that change possessions and highlight reels.

Peer percentile

Every percentile is compared against players at the same position and level, so an FBS quarterback is judged against FBS quarterbacks, not the whole sport.

Traditional first

The top tables stick to the stats fans already know from broadcasts and box scores. Advanced context is pushed underneath instead of replacing the basics.

INT -- -- pick-six TD
Pass breakups 0 Coverage disruption
QB pressures 1 Quarterback hurries | #1051/1878 (44th pct)
Open full stat explorer
0 metrics visible Showing all metrics
Group Metric Value Rank Pct Why it matters
Defense Total tackles 3 #3908/4942 21st pct Volumevs FBS DEF
Defense TFL 0.0 #3020/4972 39th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense Sacks 0.0 #1762/4972 65th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense QB hurries 1 #1051/1878 44th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense Solo tackles 1 #3987/4584 13th pct Volumevs FBS DEF

Player Standing

Universal 17-step ladder. Tier pills below; accolade streams nested.

AWAITING CLASSIFICATION

On-team2-deepStartingRecognizedEliteApex

AWAITING CLASSIFICATION · Rung None of 16

Why he’s here

Standing classification populates when honors, Heisman, and roster signals all align.

What moves him up

What moves him down

Accolade streams

StatusAwaiting tracker

The Lombardi award tracker integrates per-week probability once a dedicated scraper for this award lands. Confirmed past winners and finalists for this player will surface here.

Splits · Per-game

2025 season · 4 games

Home/Road · Win/Loss · Season halves

Home vs Road

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Home4g0.80.00.00.0

Win vs Loss

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Wins3g0.70.00.00.0
Losses1g1.00.00.00.0

First half vs Second half

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Weeks 1-73g0.70.00.00.0
Weeks 8+1g1.00.00.00.0

Pocket and defense-quality (clean vs. pressure) splits are coming soon.

Savant · Box-rate percentiles

Where this profile ranks vs the DL cohort

18Below cohort
6 metrics · season cumulative

Concern: tackles (0th).

QB hurries#1007 / 2975 · 55th pct
1defe
Sacks#1575 / 2975 · 24th pct
0.0defe
Passes defended#1916 / 2975 · 18th pct
0defe
Tackles for loss#2548 / 2975 · 7th pct
0.0defe
Solo tackles#2969 / 2975 · 0th pct
1defe
Tackles#2976 / 2975 · 0th pct
3defe

Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.

Advanced Savant · DL · 2024

Percentile Card

Advanced opponent-adjusted percentile bars are coming soon for this player.

P4G5All FBS
EPA / dropback
awaiting
CPOE
awaiting
Success rate
awaiting
Explosive rate (20+)
awaiting
aDOT
awaiting
Deep-ball accuracy
awaiting
Pressure-to-sack
awaiting
3rd-down EPA
awaiting
Red-zone TD rate
awaiting
Play-action EPA
awaiting
Scramble EPA
awaiting
Turnover-worthy play rate
awaiting

Advanced Savant

Opponent-adjusted advanced metrics with a cohort filter.

Advanced opponent-adjusted metrics are coming soon for this player. Selected cohort: P4.

Peer Comparator · Fingerprint match

Three closest profiles by box-rate percentile

3 peers · 6 metrics
BJ WilliamsWake ForestBlake FletcherAir Force· 39% simTyler MartinMassachusetts· 37% simTahj Ra-ElPurdue· 31% sim
QB hurries
55
Williams
92
Fletcher
22
Martin
22
Ra-El
Sacks
24
Williams
24
Fletcher
24
Martin
24
Ra-El
Passes defended
18
Williams
67
Fletcher
67
Martin
91
Ra-El
Tackles for loss
7
Williams
28
Fletcher
63
Martin
56
Ra-El
Solo tackles
0
Williams
91
Fletcher
87
Martin
100
Ra-El
Tackles
0
Williams
99
Fletcher
98
Martin
99
Ra-El

Closest peers by overall box-score percentile profile at the same position.

DNA Match awaiting data — similarity scores compute once season stats clear the volume gate for this position cohort.

Supporting Cast · Scheme

Staff and system around the player

2025 season

Head Coach

Jake Dickert

Pass share

48.0%

405 pass / 439 run

Plays / game

64.9

13 games

OL sack rate (allowed)

5.1%

293 dropbacks · PBP

Scheme: Balanced.

Coaching Lineage · 2022–2025

2 coaches
2022
Dave Clawson
Wake Forest
2023
Dave Clawson
Wake Forest
2025
Jake Dickert
Wake Forest
era →

Coaching transition mid-career: Dave Clawson → Jake Dickert. Worth noting in scheme + development context.

Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster

Off-field context — switch tabs to drill into recruit profile, transfer arc, or roster timeline.

HometownJohnston, SC
Height6'4"
Weight273 lb
Class4
PositionDL
Jersey18

Trophy Case · Detail

Every honor on the ledger, broken out by stream and selector.

Honors

No formal honors on the ledger yet

All-America, all-conference, player-of-the-week, watch-list, and postseason awards land here when they're earned. The absence is the signal: most players never collect formal honors, and that's its own kind of context.

Honors Timeline

Season-end distinction and week-by-week recognition on one timeline.

Season Honor Scope Team / Selector Context
No formal honors on the ledger yet. All-America, all-conference, weekly awards, watch lists, and postseason trophies land here when they’re earned.

Heisman By Year

Modeled rank and official finish by season.

Season Team Role Latest Model Forecast Win Finalist Official Finish Points Context
2024 Wake Forest DL4 #14015 #14156 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W16 snapshot | ACC
2023 Wake Forest DL4 #13011 #13215 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W19 snapshot | ACC
2022 Wake Forest DL4 #11480 #11338 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W20 snapshot | ACC

Roster Timeline

Team, conference, and class by season.

Season Team Conference Pos Class Bio
2025 Wake Forest ACC DL 4 No. 18 | 6-4 | 273 lb | Johnston, SC
2024 Wake Forest ACC DL 4 No. 18 | 6-4 | 273 lb | Johnston, SC
2023 Wake Forest ACC DL 4 No. 18 | 6-4 | 273 lb | Johnston, SC
2022 Wake Forest ACC DL 4 No. 18 | 6-4 | 273 lb | Johnston, SC