Bryce Young is who we thought he was

Alabama sophomore quarterback Bryce Young became a household name last week, if he wasn’t already. He shredded Georgia’s top-ranked defense in the SEC Championship Game to the tune of 421 yards and three touchdowns through the air and 40 yards and another score on the ground.

Young effectively wrapped up the Heisman Trophy in the first half and should become Alabama’s fourth winner (all since 2009) when the award is handed out Saturday night. He’s currently a 100-1 favorite to win.

The SEC title game was a star-making performance for Young, as the nation was able to see his special qualities play out on one of the sport’s biggest stages. But for those who follow recruiting, Young’s ascent certainly hasn’t come out of the blue.

Young plays up to his ranking

Young was the top-ranked quarterback prospect in the 2020 cycle and checked in as the No. 3 overall prospect in the 2020 On3 Consensus, which evenly weights the rankings from the major recruiting companies.

I worked for 247Sports at the time. We were the only major recruiting company to have Young as the No. 1 overall prospect in the cycle. During the final rankings meetings, there was full agreement that Young was the top prospect in the cycle, and little objection other than healthy devil’s advocate arguments just to make sure. If anything, Young made it easy on us. He was consistently the best player at seemingly every turn while playing the most valuable position, much like he is now in college football.

Our goal in the rankings process is to assess prospects’ long-term potential and impact in college football, ultimately manifested by the NFL draft. With Young, the feeling was that he would be such a great college player that he would leave little doubt among NFL decision-makers at the top of the draft.

That projection appears to be taking shape. On Sunday, ESPN’s Mel Kiper declared Young to be the “guaranteed” top pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. There’s obviously still a lot of football to be played between now and then to make such a declarative statement, but it’s safe to say that Young is tracking like the favorite to be the top pick.

Should Kiper’s forecast turn out to be true, Young would join Trevor Lawrence as the only quarterback in the internet recruiting era to be ranked as the No. 1 high school prospect by a major media company and taken with the top selection. Suffice to say, Young is right on track.

Young’s skills are unique

Going into halftime Saturday, a somewhat bumfuzzled Kirby Smart summed up what it’s like to go up against Young. “At the end of the day, you have to get to him or he’s going to get you,” said Smart. “He’s a really talented player. He sees the field.”

CBS analyst Gary Danielson echoed Smart’s comments: “You get a feeling if you bust a coverage, he’ll find you.”

Perhaps more than anything, the game moves slow for Young. Field vision has been his top differentiating trait since he was in high school. He’s able to play with the spatial awareness to map the field and track multiple objects at once. Young is so advanced in that regard, particularly for a college sophomore, that it looks easy to the outside observer.

We saw the same skills a few years ago when Young was at powerhouse Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei. Here’s some of what I wrote about Young midway through his senior season:

“Precision and feel for the game are the among the skills that separate Young from other quarterback prospects at this stage. We’ve seen the game continue slowing for him as a senior. He processes very quickly and has quick eyes in going through his progressions.

“He has a natural feel for the game and is able to operate within the framework of the offense but also possesses some of the best improvisational ability in this class. Young is cat-quick in the pocket and is tough for pass rushers to corral. When the play goes off-script, Young is very creative and can make throws from different arm slots and platforms.”

One play from Young’s senior season is seared in my mind. A linebacker had a free run from Young’s blind side. He was able to feel the pressure and lure the unabated blitzer into over-pursuing, then quickly spin around and hop to his left before completing a pass.

pic.twitter.com/YfhkUgMica

— CP burner (@CharlesGPower) December 8, 2021

This is Jedi-type stuff from an 18-year-old quarterback.

Young thrives under the bright lights

Steady improvement is a hallmark of the developmental arcs among top quarterbacks. Top preps-to-college-to-pros prospects like Lawrence and Matthew Stafford got better every year of high school. There wasn’t a plateau in their progression. We saw the same from Young.

Young was one of the best quarterback prospects in the 2020 cycle as a sophomore at Cathedral High in Los Angeles. He transferred to Mater Dei as a junior after J.T. Daniels skipped his senior season to reclassify and enroll early at USC. Young had a strong junior season in leading the Monarchs to a state title and No. 1 national ranking.

Young continued to show progress as a senior. His final season was among the best senior years we’ve seen from a top quarterback prospect, especially considering the competition.

Young was 294-of-409 (71.9%) for 4,528 yards, 58 touchdowns and six interceptions. He also rushed for 357 yards and 10 touchdowns. While Young was playing at a powerhouse high school against a national schedule, he did so with a relatively weaker supporting cast than other recent Mater Dei quarterbacks.

Young parlayed the confidence from his senior season into the postseason all-star circuit. His week at the All-American Bowl practices and game was the best I’ve personally seen from a quarterback in an all-star setting. Here’s some more of what I wrote at the time:

“I can’t say enough how good Young looked throughout the week. The ball came out of his hand the most consistently of all the quarterbacks and I saw very few off-target passes. Young’s field vision is next-level. There was a sequence during the joint practice where his view was restricted (by a coach I believe) and he could still anticipate the wide receiver’s location despite not being able to see him. Young makes it look easy and should have little trouble adjusting to the speed of the college game this spring.”

Inspiring confidence among others

Young’s ability to both handle and thrive on the big stage inspires confidence among his coaches and teammates. The steady improvement, cool demeanor and elevation of his game when facing top competition are hard to ignore.

During a College GameDay segment this season, Nick Saban was asked what he likes about Young.

“Bryce is a great competitor,” Saban said. “He’s a very smart and intelligent and instinctive football player who prepares really well for the game. Has a good understanding of what they’re doing on the other side of the ball. He makes really fast decisions, which I think is important. He has great judgment and he’s very accurate with the ball. The combination of all of those things has made him a very effective performer. He doesn’t get his feathers ruffled very easily, which is really kind of good for that position.”

Nearly two years ago, longtime Mater Dei coach Bruce Rollinson was more effusive in his praise of Young, calling him “the greatest quarterback in school history.”

At the time, Rollinson saying Young was best quarterback in school history without flinching certainly carried weight. Mater Dei is the alma mater of Heisman winners John Huarte (Notre Dame) and Matt Leinart (USC), as well as many other former college quarterbacks. But Rollinson certainly was on to something. Young should become Mater Dei’s third Heisman winner Saturday night.