Spring football returned to the University of Alabama on Friday, March 11.
Fans of the Crimson Tide are excited for this edition of athletes taking the field, as Nick Saban and the program look to reclaim the crown of national champions. With 15 practice sessions – including the A-Day Game – the staff writers for Touchdown Alabama Magazine will provide in-depth previews on marquee players.
We start things off on offense with quarterback Bryce Young.
Bryce Young
Classification: Junior
Position: Quarterback
Hometown: Pasadena, Calif.
Height: 6-0
Weight: 194 pounds
Strengths: Accuracy, pocket awareness, experience, ball placement, decision making, poise
Weaknesses: None that are glaring
Summary for Spring Practice
What more can be said about Bryce Young that hasn’t been already. In his first year on the job at Alabama, he proved to be the best quarterback and best player in all of college football.
The expectations put on Young when he first arrived at Alabama in the class of 2020 were lofty enough as he was the top quarterback in the nation when he committed, but somehow he proved to exceed those expectations in 2021.
In 15 games Young threw for 4,872 yards, 47 touchdowns and just seven interceptions as he went on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy in a landslide. What was so spectacular about Young’s season was his precision with the football as he rarely put it in harm’s way which is a trait Nick Saban looks for in all his quarterbacks. But Young’s style of play was anything but conservative, the highlights of him throwing to Jameson Williams alone will make take your breath away.
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Despite standing at 6-feet even, Young never had an issue finding the open man or operating inside an Alabama pocket which seemed to always be closing in on him. There were calls for Young to scramble downfield more due to the inconsistency of his protection, but more often than not he would keep the play alive for a big gain through the air which is one of the most difficult things to do as a quarterback. All of the greats at the next level not only have the ability to pick up first downs with their feet but what makes them elite is their pocket awareness which Young has proven to have.
Other than his physical abilities, Young has something that not many quarterbacks have at his level.
Poise under pressure.
Throughout the season, Young saw several high-pressure situations that required him to execute in order to keep the Crimson Tide’s season alive and he overwhelmingly succeeded in such moments. His demeanor can be easily summed up from his fourth-down play against Auburn in the Iron Bowl.
With under a minute to go and one play away from losing its playoff hopes to its biggest rival, Young looked out to the defense and cracked a smile before connecting with Jahleel Billingsley for the first down. He enjoys the moment and isn’t afraid of the outcome, which sets him apart from the rest of the league.
This spring Young will have one thing on his mind and that’s leading Alabama to a national championship win. After losing to Georgia this past season, Young took the loss hard putting much of the blame on himself. But Saban was quick to take that burden off of Young’s shoulders with his own postgame comments because as great as Young is the quarterback is a dependant position and the biggest area he needs to work on in the spring is developing chemistry with his new receivers.
Alabama lost Williams, John Metchie and Slade Bolden to the NFL who were all some of Young’s favorite targets last season. The sort of success he had with the trio doesn’t just happen overnight, which is why it will be imperative for Young to take full advantage of the spring season to find out who will help him and the offense accomplish its goals.
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Patrick Dowd is a Reporter for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter, via Pat_Dowd77
