Bryce Young won the 2021 Heisman Trophy. The Alabama quarterback rose above the field by checking all the boxes.
[mm-video type=playlist id=01f1343a1wt7q817p7 player_id=none image=https://collegefootballnews.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]
Bryce Young Wins The Heisman Trophy
– Contact/Follow @PeteFiutak
There wasn’t another option.
Others might have received first place votes, but there really isn’t an argument for anyone other than Bryce Young to be the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner.
There wasn’t a box left unchecked as he had a Heisman-caliber season in every way. In a college football season without any obvious options until the very end, he took over when he had to.
2021 Heisman Trophy Voting
1. QB Bryce Young, Alabama, 684 1st, 2311 points
2. DE Aidan Hutchinson, Michigan, 78 1st, 954 points
3. QB Kenny Pickett, Pitt, 28 1st, 631 points
4. QB CJ Stroud, Ohio State, 12 1st, 399 points
5. DE Will Anderson, Alabama 31 1st, 325 points
Was he the star player for the national championship-level team? Check.
Was he a quarterback or running back – after things went a wee bit off script last year with DeVonta Smith? Check.
Did he have a signature Heisman moment? Down 10-3 with just over 90 seconds to play, Young had 1st-and-97 against Auburn, took the team down the field, got through a few overtimes, saved the season. Check.
Did he show up large in the biggest and most important game of the season when everyone was paying attention? 26-of-44 for 421 yards and three touchdowns and, no picks, and a rushing touchdown against the biggest, baddest defense in the land. SEC Championship: Alabama 41, Georgia 24. Check.
Did he have the stats? WKU’s Bailey Zappe threw more touchdown passes (56), but Young had the most touchdown throws among all Power Five quarterbacks (43) with just four picks. And he did it against an SEC schedule. Check.
He threw multiple touchdown passes in every game and four or more in five games. Check.
Was he that bad in the down moment – he threw for 369 yards and three touchdowns with a pick in the loss to Texas A&M. Check.
Was he the MVP? Alabama is the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff partly because its quarterback got the job done in the big moments. Check.
Was he the MOP? He was outstanding in those moments, threw for 4,322 yards, and again, he was the standout player in the biggest moments that mattered to get to this point. Check.
But don’t take it all for granted.
Yeah, he’s the quarterback at Alabama. Yeah, it’s not like he was getting the job done without NFL talent around him.
Yeah, he’s the first Alabama quarterback to win the Heisman Trophy.
Now 2021 Heisman winner has two more boxes to check, starting with Cincinnati on New Year’s Eve.
[protected-iframe id=”361699434b6d70baf15f631ed2408ac1-97672683-92922408″ info=”https://www.googletagservices.com/tag/js/gpt.js” ]