Paul Finebaum Drops Truth Bomb on Bryce Young’s Heisman Chances

Getty Bryce Young throws a pass during Alabama's victory over Utah State.

Bryce Young has played just one game this season but ESPN’s Paul Finebaum thinks the Alabama quarterback will be facing an uphill battle to repeat as the Heisman Trophy winner. Young threw for five touchdowns, rushed for 100 yards and scored on a rushing touchdown during the Crimson Tide’s dominant 55-0 victory over Utah State to kick off the 2022 season.

On ESPN’s “Get Up,” Finebaum was asked if he thinks Young will win the Heisman again. “Here’s the problem,” Finebaum said. “There are Heisman voters like me. Think about this for a second: My wife, I overheard her on the phone earlier buying burial insurance. Because I’m closer to burial than I am anything else. I’m a youngster compared to most of the Heisman voters. They’re a crotchety old group. And they don’t like repeat winners. They still regret what happened in the 70s.”

Finebaum added, “Whether Bryce deserves it or not, I think right now he does, they’ll end up voting for somebody like (Ohio State QB CJ) Stroud, if he continues to have a big season, or Will Anderson, who is Bryce Young’s teammate.” Ohio State’s Archie Griffin is the only two-time Heisman winner in the trophy’s history.

Finebaum Says It’s Far Too Early to Say Bryce Young Has the Heisman Trophy Wrapped Up

Earlier on “Get Up,” host Mike Greenberg asked Finebaum, “Do you have Archie Griffin’s phone number? Because if so, give him a call and tell him he’s going to have to make room in his club of one. He is the only two-time Heisman Trophy winner. Just send the trophy to Bryce Young. He’s going to win it again. He looks even better this year.”

Finebaum responded, “You’re an idiot. … You cannot make that statement. A year ago today we all sat on this stage and we all gave the trophy to Alabama to win the National Championship. I know I like to overreact and overexaggerate sometimes, but you can’t say that on Labor Day. Because so many things can happen. And I still think Bryce Young has competition on his own team from two different players and don’t forget Stroud. He was great in the fourth quarter and he will be great again. He’s a major competitor.”

Stroud led the Buckeyes to a come-from-behind win over Notre Dame while throwing for 223 yards and two touchdowns. Finebaum’s colleague, Heather Dinich, added, “It’s Young right this second, and then it’s Stroud. But to me, personally, it’s Will Anderson Jr. … To me, he’s the one we should be talking about.”

Young Says

Young spoke to reporters on Monday at after the Utah State victory. The Tide quarterback is looking ahead to the team’s second game of the season, at Texas on Saturday, September 10. He had praise for the Longhorns defense.

“They’re an extremely well-coached unit,” Young told reporters. “Really athletic, really talented and also really disciplined. They’re a really good group. They do a lot of things but they communicate really well. That shows how well coached they are. … We know the challenge that’s ahead of us.”

Looking back on his week 1 performance, Young told reporters, “I think for me it’s not too much about carryover. It’s about watching the film after, seeing things that I didn’t do as well and trying to improve on that and seeing things I did do well and then how can I build on that, how can I make that consistent. For me, it’s more of an analytical, just analyzing how I played last week and just working throughout the week.”