Columbus native Mykel Williams of UGA gets picked in first round of NFL Draft
The 2025 NFL Draft at Lambeau Field in Green Bay had a Columbus connection Thursday night when former Hardaway High School football star Mykel Williams of the University of Georgia was selected by the San Francisco 49ers with the 11th pick in the first round.
Although the NFL invited him to be at the venue in person, the ABC/ESPN television camera showed Williams instead watched the draft at a party in Atlanta. And watching on TV in his Atlanta home was Michael Woolridge, beaming with joy when he heard Williams’ name announced.
“It’s surreal,” Woolridge, who was Hardaway’s head football coach during Williams’ first three years at the Muscogee County high school, told the Ledger-Enquirer. “He had everything he needed already. We just had to sharpen his skill set.”
That’s because Woolridge knew Williams well before he became the Maxwell Award High School Defensive Player of the Year in 2021, a freshman All-American in 2022 and a second-team All-SEC defensive end in 2023 and 2024 at UGA, which he helped win the national championship by leading the team with 4.5 sacks.
Woolridge recalled first seeing Williams as an eighth-grader — not on a football field but on a basketball court — at Fort Middle School in Columbus.
“Great moves, great footwork, soft touch around the basket,” Woolridge said. “He wasn’t physically developed yet — probably 6-foot-1 or 6-2 and about 200 or 205 pounds — but he had a great frame. … I had a great conversation with his dad and got him to come to Hardaway, and the rest is history.”
Now at 6-foot-5 and 260 pounds, Williams was ranked No. 7 by Pro Football Focus among edge defenders in the 2025 NFL Draft.
‘Strong work ethic’
When he first saw Williams practice as a freshman with Hardaway’s football team, Woolridge was impressed beyond his physical attributes.
“He had a strong work ethic,” Woolridge said. “He always wanted to get better.”
Williams was a two-way lineman as a freshman and got an unexpected start when Woolridge inserted him into the lineup as an injury replacement.
“He was like a deer in the headlights,” Woolridge said with a laugh. “He always thought he was ready, but when he got thrown into the fire his first year, he realized he had to develop a little bit more. That woke him up.”
Woolridge decided to channel Williams’ athleticism into one position, starting his sophomore year, so he dropped offensive line from his repertoire to concentrate on defensive end.
Williams was invited as a sophomore to play in the Georgia Athletic Coaches Association all-star football game.
“I want to say he got five or six sacks,” Woolridge said. “… That’s when I really realized he could play big-time ball. I knew this kid was going to be a dominating college recruit.”
Woolridge, who left Hardaway to coach at South Atlanta and then Pebblebrook but isn’t coaching at a high school now, gets a vicarious thrill to see Williams soar to such success.
“It validates everything you do and everything you instill in these kids and the moves and the values you teach them,” he said. “… Mykel is a great kid, great attitude, and he deserves everything he’s getting.”
‘Fun-loving guy’
Woolridge described Williams as a “monster” on the field but a “fun-loving guy” off the field.
“He’s humble,” Woolridge said. “He doesn’t let his fame and all this attention exclude him. … He leads by example, but he also can be a vocal leader.”
Woolridge insists the high-ankle sprain that slowed Williams this season shouldn’t be a factor when NFL teams evaluate him.
“When he’s 100% healthy, as big and built as he is, he’s very fast off the ball,” Woolridge said. “So his combination of size and speed is scary.”
Beyond the impact on a team, Woolridge believes Williams will be an asset in the community where he plays as a professional football player.
“He had a community service project where he gave away bikes at Odis Spencer Stadium,” Woolridge said. “So it’s things like that, outside the field, that show the kind of person he is to be worth a first-round selection.”
Such a selection will turn Williams into a millionaire when he signs his contract. No need to worry big money will cause him big trouble, his former coach contends.
“His father (John Johnson) — we call him Big John — has done an amazing job raising him,” Woolridge said. “… I got to see his dad build in him character and morals and values, making sure Mykel did right.”
How well will Mykel Williams fit with San Francisco 49ers
Woolridge thinks Williams, a junior at UGA, will be a good fit with the Niners.
“They are gonna get a guy that’s highly motivated,” Woolridge said. “Mykel hasn’t even reached his full potential. He won’t be 21 for three more months, so he’s still relatively young.”
The defensive line has been considered one of the biggest needs for the 49ers, and Woolridge figures Williams will help them there, no matter the down and distance.
“He’s an exceptional pass rusher, but he’s also tremendous against the run,” Woolridge said. “. . . He’s gonna set the edge pretty well.”
Woolridge noted San Francisco’s record of consistently producing successful football teams will benefit Williams as he develops in the NFL.
“It’ll be a great environment for him,” Woolridge said. “It’s an established franchise with a great history. . . . They had a lot of key injuries to key players last year, but he’s going to a team that has a chance to compete for the title.”
This story was originally published April 24, 2025 at 9:19 AM.
