Bryce Young recalls moment he decided to go to Alabama

As he prepares to be drafted early in the 2023 NFL Draft, Alabama quarterback Bryce Young opened up about the moment he decided to go to Alabama.

For Young, it started while he was committed to USC and decided to take a trip to Alabama.

“I was still committed to SC, and I took a trip,” Bryce Young said on the Pivot. “You know, I told them, ‘Hey, I’m gonna take this trip to Alabama. We’ve been talking. I just want to be transparent about it.’ So, we go up there, take a trip, and I think it was like Southern Miss.”

As Bryce Young explained, it was during this visit that he and his family realized that he was going to go to Alabama. For his family, this was an incredibly emotional moment.

“So, we got to the game, watch the game. After, we go look at all the facilities, we meet with everyone, and I think we’re in the offices or something walking and like my mom just starts crying. We’re just walking, and it was like are you good, everything, and it was kind of that realization that like, for a while, I was going to be 20, 20 minutes away. An hour with traffic,” Young said.

“Like, you know, I was gonna be close. I was gonna be within an arm’s reach, and I think I kind of saw it. My dad kind of saw it too and then it was my mom coming to that realization of, you know, like this is what was best. This is the right thing. So, I think on that trip in our own time, we all came to that together and we were figure it out. And it was tough for her because, again, I was gonna be close and now she’s coming to the realization that the best place for me is across the country and it’s not just a little drive away. Like, I’m going to be gone for — I’ve never not been at the house. I’m going to be just down the street. I’m going to be going across the country.”

This wasn’t the plan for Bryce Young. However, as he explained, it was the right thing for him to do at the time.

“For us, we all kind of around that time realized this isn’t what was planned. This isn’t the easiest or the most comfortable thing for me. You know, I had everything mapped out. I knew exactly where I was gonna live at, I knew everyone on the team, I knew people who were just students there, like it’s just closest to me and I was like, ‘Yeah, this is the jump that I’m gonna take. It might be different, it might be uncomfortable, but this is what I need and we all realized it at the same time. It was definitely a big moment for us as a family.”

Bryce Young downplayed being the first overall pick

Bryce Young is expected to be the first overall draft pick. However, he downplayed the importance of that possibility.

“For me, I don’t think it’s something that I put stock in. Again, I feel like I’m gonna land where I’m supposed to. I feel like, again, everything happens for a reason. And I can’t control it, honestly,” Young said.

“If I worry about stuff I can’t control? I’m gonna go crazy…That just doesn’t feel like an efficient way for me to operate. Being the No. 1 pick falls in that…That’s not up to me. That’s stuff that’s away from me.”