Film Don't Lie | Bryce Young
Whenever a Notre Dame legend has a son participating at a football camp, the coaching staff is well aware of the player before they step foot on campus. They knew about Bryce Young, the son of NFL Hall of Famer Bryant Young, before he worked out for Al Washington last summer.
It was that day that Bryce earned an offer as an edge prospect from the Notre Dame coaching staff. It was a bold evaluation given that they were offering him at a position he had barely played and he wasn’t exactly prototype size at the time.
That offer paid off as Bryce took off in his first full year playing defensive line and made significant gains with his physical development. He pledged to the Irish today and I think Notre Dame fans should be very excited about it even if he wasn’t a legacy.
Height: 6’5”
Weight: 242
Projected Position: Defensive end
ISD Grade: 92 (4-star)
National Average Grade: 90.0 (4-star)
What he does best:
Young is long and twitchy. He flashes a very good first step and displays good reactive athleticism. He’s explosive laterally and that really stands out.
There are flashes of violence with him against the run that I love to see. He’s only going to get better as he gains more experience at the point of attack, but he already shows the kind of strength that’s necessary to excel there.
The biggest piece of it for me is the frame combined with the way he moves. He can accelerate to the quarterback.
And there just aren’t many dudes with his frame who display this kind of effort and have the ability to run down the field like this.
What he needs to improve:
He’s not someone who has a pass rush plan and a lot of that has to do with how they play him on defense. There’s a lot of him in a “wide 9” with him way outside and crashing in off the edge. That’s not how he’s going to play in college and it will be an adjustment.
He doesn’t consistently use his length to his advantage, which is pretty normal for someone who is new to the position. He has also gotten a lot bigger in the past year and the strength is going to catch up to that eventually, but isn’t there yet.
Young is so raw in most areas and is only scratching the surface in many areas.
What’s his ceiling?
Young was 6-3 208 when he was first offered and had not played defensive line full time. He’s now 6’5” 242 and growing. He’s bigger than he was during his junior season and once his frame fills out, he’s going to be a beast.
My ranking on him is primarily about projecting that growth, the physical traits I see, and it certainly doesn’t hurt that he has the genetics and that his Dad played and coached defensive line.
I see him making a big leap as a senior and in a lot of ways he is like Joe Alt was during his recruitment. His raw tools are exciting and I think he has potential develop into a high-level starter at defensive end.
Who he could be:
Former Florida State edge Jermaine Johnson
Men's Under Armour Heather Gray Notre Dame Fighting Irish Gameday Twist Quarter-Zip Top
