Bryce Young doesn’t gamble, at all. He makes that perfectly clear.
Alabama’s star quarterback only deals in certainty, things within his control. If it involves chance or luck, he’s probably not interested.
“If I’m being 100% honest, I’m not a bettor at all,” Young said in a recent interview with For The Win about his new NIL deal with Dr. Pepper. “Maybe the most I’ve bet is some push-ups on who could shoot a piece of paper into a trash can.”
For those who do care about matters of chance – like, say, Young’s odds to win the Heisman trophy for a second straight year – this is the best news possible. It’s how he won the first award.
What Young can control is how he prepares and how he performs on game day to help his team win. With that as his only goal last year, the individual success came as a result.
“It’s a huge honor. It’s something as a little kid you always look at and admire. But honestly it wasn’t a goal for me going into the season at all,” Young said of winning the 2021 Heisman award. “For me, the goal is just to win as a team and accomplish our team goals. I’m not someone who sets individual goals for myself as far as performance goes.
“One of the things about Alabama that makes it so great is when your team is able to be successful, a lot of times that translates into individual success. And I know that, I trust that process.”
Trusting the process allowed Young to lead Alabama all the way to the College Football Playoff national championship game in January. Sure enough, his role in that success helped him land the Heisman trophy as the most outstanding player in college football. Additionally, it allowed him to add to his portfolio of NIL deals – the latest with Dr. Pepper includes a spot in its new season of the parody college football drama, Fansville.
*sips @DrPepper* #drpepperpartner pic.twitter.com/CWSvLYhTd8
— Bryce Young (@_bryce_young) August 22, 2022
Now, Young will have an opportunity to become just the second player ever to win the Heisman more than once. Despite his standing as the reigning winner, however, he’s not the betting favorite; that title belongs to Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud, who had +210 odds at Tipcio Sportsbook. Young is second at +380.
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Ranked No. 2 in the country, Stroud’s Buckeyes have national title hopes too. But unlike Alabama, they’ll be motivated by missing the CFP completely in 2021. If he’s as focused on team success as Young, it’ll make for quite the tug-of-war between national title hopefuls led by Heisman candidates.
Top-ranked Alabama isn’t without fire, though. The Tide fell short of their goal last season, losing to SEC rival Georgia in the title game. Getting there and finishing the job is Young’s biggest goal going into the new season, which Alabama kicks off Saturday against Utah State. That gives him as good a shot at winning another Heisman as any.
“It’s not really something that I think about,” Young said. “It’s a huge honor and huge blessing to receive the award that I did. I definitely don’t take it lightly. But at the same time, I’m just focused on the team goals. That’s what my approach has been since I’ve been at the University.”
