Bryce Young Looks to Grow in Junior Season

Bryce Young left little to be worried about in his sophomore season.

The former five-star from California surgically deconstructed opposing defenses to the tune of over 4,800 passing yards and nearly fifty touchdowns, all while securing college football's most prestigious individual award, the Heisman Trophy.

While Young put together a near perfect season, the junior signal caller would be the first to tell you it wasn't enough. Alabama fell short in the national title game, losing to the Georgia Bulldogs and Young was unable to recreate the same success seen all season in the final game of the year.

Speaking with media for the first time since the national title game, Young was honest about the process of overcoming a loss of that magnitude.

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Young said, candidly, "Obviously, something like a national championship, that’s something you dream of, something you work for, and when it doesn’t go your way, it hurts. It hurts a lot," Young continued, "For me, it was kind of trying to transition from just the emotions of the game, the immediate emotions, to the anger that you feel at yourself. You look back and wish you could have had plays back, moments back."

Now, entering his second season as Alabama's starter, and doing so with a chip on his shoulder, Young looks to grow as not only a quarterback, but a leader.

"I feel like I just wanted to do a better job of having more control over the offense, making sure in the run game, we’re going to the right people," Young continued, outlining his goals for the offseason, "I feel like a big challenge is making sure that, as a unit throughout the week, we’re all on the same accord, we’re all clear, trying to do a better job of communicating with all my guys and making sure that we’re all on the same page whenever I’m changing something or there’s something that may not be as clear."

Young will undoubtedly resume right where he left off a season ago, but with many new faces surrounding him, the second year starter will be unable to rely on the same veterans from last year.

Alabama will take the field on April 16 for the annual A-Day Game, and will kick off the 2022 season on September 3 against Utah State at home in Bryant-Denny Stadium for the first time since 2011.