Bryce Young talks transfer additions, building chemistry with new wide receivers

Alabama had one of the biggest transfer portal hauls this offseason, bringing in some impressive names to improve the roster. Bryce Young is in good position to benefit from the additions, and he addressed the new faces ahead of the Manning Passing Academy, which he’s attending in Louisiana this weekend.

The Crimson Tide brought in three of the top 10 transfers to hit the portal this year, according to the On3 Transfer Portal Rankings. Former Georgia Tech running back Jahmyr Gibbs leads the charge as On3’s No. 3 transfer and former Georgia wide receiver Jermaine Burton is close behind at No. 6. Former LSU cornerback Eli Ricks will try to help bolster the defense as On3’s No. 8 transfer portal prospect.

Gibbs and Burton are two huge additions for the offense — and Young, understandably, sounds excited to work with them.

“It’s been super cool working with the guys that transferred in,” Young said. “Them coming from different systems, it’s easy. And with the stuff we do it’s easy to just fade away or try to figure it out, but they’ve all come in with a professional mindset. They’ve all wanted to learn, done a really good job picking up the offense.

“For me, it’s a lot of fun. Just an opportunity to learn, bounce ideas off them, them bounce ideas off me, us be able to kind of come together and learn together and grow together. It’s something that’s definitely a work in progress, we’re still working on it, but I’ve been enjoying the process.”

Bryce Young talks chemistry with new Jermaine Burton, Tyler Harrell

Burton wasn’t the only wide receiver Alabama picked up from the portal, though. Former Louisville star Tyler Harrell is also in the fold, meaning Bryce Young has two new big-time targets to replace Jameson Williams and John Metchie, who entered the 2022 NFL Draft.

Last season at Georgia, Burton totaled 26 receptions for 497 yards and five touchdowns to help the Bulldogs win their first national title in 40 years — appropriately, doing so against the Crimson Tide. Harrell, meanwhile, had 18 receptions for 523 yards and six touchdowns for Louisville.

With training camp around the corner, Young said practice is going to be huge to develop chemistry with his new receivers.

“I think the more reps we get, whether it’s off the field, whether it’s reps we’ve gotten during break or obviously the reps we get in practice, all those reps add up,” Young said. “And the more we reps we get, the more we talk about things, the more on the same page we are and even when we’re not on the field when we’re talking about just little stuff that I want to make sure we’re on the same page, all the reps I get they keep helping. I’m excited to even get more reps and grow even closer.”