TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Moments after recording perhaps the best statistical performance in school history, Bryce Young wanted to do anything but bask in his accomplishment.
The sophomore quarterback set Alabama’s single-game record with 559 passing yards Saturday, leading the No. 1 Crimson Tide to a 42-35 victory over No. 21 Arkansas. His passing total tramped the previous record of 484 set by Scott Hunter during a 1969 game against Auburn. Young put together a virtually flawless game against the Razorbacks, completing 31 of 40 completions while tossing five touchdowns.
The performance could very well go down as the defining moment in his Heisman Trophy campaign, as he’s guaranteed to be one of the finalists for the award when it is handed out next month. However, sitting in front of reporters Saturday night, Young didn’t want to speak about any of that.
“All the big quarterbacks that have played here, to accomplish something like that is definitely a blessing,” Young said of his record night. “It’s going to go down as something great that I did, but in reality, that’s a reflection of the whole team. That’s my O-line protecting for me. That’s my receivers making my job easy, the running backs helping me move [the ball] in the passing and the run game and [offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien] calling great plays. It’s really a great team accomplishment.”
Young’s being more than a bit humble. While Jameson Williams and John Metchie combined for 18 receptions for 363 yards and four touchdowns, they also tallied three drops in the game. That offensive line that Young raved about allowed four sacks, four hurries and committed a few penalties that robbed the quarterback of a few more big plays. Young also saw tight end Cameron Latu fumble inside the 5-yard line, forcing the Tide to come up empty on a likely scoring drive.
Young can be modest all he wants, but without him, Alabama’s hopes of returning to the College Football Playoff would have died Saturday night.
“He made really good decisions about who to throw the ball to,” Alabama head coach Nick Saban said of his quarterback. “I mean he had several, at least four, drops, and he had a couple of overthrows, but the guy had a fantastic game I think. He really did a great job taking what they give. He’s accurate with the ball, and other than a couple of drops [from his receivers] he did a really good job in the game.”
It’s also worth pointing out that Arkansas’ whole defensive approach was designed to stop a performance like this. The Razorbacks dropped eight defenders back, looking to eliminate big plays in the passing game by providing extra coverage.
The lack of pass rush only allowed Young more time to find receivers downfield. That resulted in him recording 13 completions of 20 or more yards, including touchdown passes of 20, 32, 40 and 79 yards out. Young also rushed for 40 yards on four attempts when excluding sacks.
“He has a great knack in the pocket for where to slide, and he keeps his eyes downfield,” Saban said. “So it’s not like he’s scrambling to run and looking at the rush, which I think is a real key to the drill if you’re going to be a guy who’s a successful passer. And he knows when to tuck it and go. He’s deceptively quick and has better speed than most people think. So he makes a lot of very good plays.’”
Through 11 games, Young has completed 71.6% of his passes for 3,584 yards and 38 touchdowns with just three interceptions. His passing yards and touchdowns already rank No. 3 on Alabama’s single-season list.
Alabama’s victory Saturday clinched the SEC West title, meaning that Young will have at least three games to add to his passing totals. The Tide travels to Auburn next week before facing No. 1 Georgia in the SEC Championship Game on Dec. 4. From there, it will either play in a bowl game or make an appearance in the College Football Playoff.
Either way, it’s likely Young ends this season with the most prolific statistical campaign in school history. Just don’t expect him to gloat when he does it.
“For me, it’s just doing whatever it takes for us to win,” Young said. “Tonight could have been anybody’s game. It ended up being passing yards, but that’s a reflection of everyone on the team and everyone doing their job.”
