All About Bryce Young, the No. 1 Draft Pick in the 2023 NFL Draft

Bryce Young was drafted by the Carolina Panthers during the 2023 NFL Draft

Bryce Young has found his NFL home.

On April 27, 2023, the former University of Alabama quarterback was drafted by the Carolina Panthers as the No. 1 draft pick.

Young, a 21-year-old junior from Pasadena, California, announced his intention to enter the draft back in January 2023, opting to forgo his senior season. As the 2021 Heisman Trophy recipient, Young ended his collegiate career with 80 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 27 starts — making him one of the most sought-after prospects in the draft.

While Young has proven his skills throughout his prolific college career at Alabama, what he's most proud of isn't his athletic ability. Instead, Young values his leadership skills, which he hopes to use both on and off the field in the NFL.

"For me, I really pride myself on my leadership," Young said at the NFL Scouting Combine, per ESPN. "I know that's something I have to earn at the next level. I'm really excited to … try to earn that trust and respect from that locker room. I know that's not something I'm entitled to."

From his college career to the 2023 NFL Draft, here's everything to know about Bryce Young.

He spent most of his childhood in Pasadena, California

Young was born on July 25, 2001, in Philadelphia. As a child, his family relocated to Pasadena, California, where he discovered his love of football. He attended Cathedral High School for two years before he was recruited by football powerhouse Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, California.

"The decision to transfer from Cathedral to attend Mater Dei was a difficult one for my family and I. However, after much thought and prayer, I have decided to seize the opportunity to compete at the highest level and to set myself up for the next level," Young tweeted in 2018.

At Mater Dei, Young became a highly decorated player. As a senior, Young was named Los Angeles Times Player of the Year, California's Gatorade Football Player of the Year and USA Today's High School Offensive Player of the Year.

He was an avid basketball player before pursuing football

Growing up, Young was also an avid basketball player, having attended youth basketball camps. In fact, he shared on his podcast that if he were a "little bit taller," he might have pursued the sport full-time. Instead, he stuck to playing recreationally. One of his childhood coaches recalled that Young was already incredibly skilled early on.

"He was athletic, his handle was really good, his shot was good, his decision making was good, he could guard. He was a really good all-around point guard," his coach Mike Teller told AL.com in 2021. "I've been doing this for going on 19 years, and in my opinion, there is no doubt he would have been a Division I point guard."

While Young didn't pursue basketball after high school, he has credited the sport with instilling discipline in his training regimen.

"I feel like that really helped me as far as … building a routine and kind of staying at something," Young said on his podcast. "There's a lot of correlation between doing that and stuff I do now, as far as being scheduled, being on a routine, understanding the importance of a daily grind and staying at something and improving."

He originally planned to attend the University of Southern California

As a high school senior, Young committed to playing football for the University of Southern California. He explained to 247Sports that since the school was close to home, he'd frequented the campus often and was "really comfortable with the coaching staff." The athlete noted that USC was also academically a "great school," which was important to him.

In July 2018, Young, who was a rising junior, officially committed to USC — but by September 2019, the high school senior switched from USC to the University of Alabama, per ESPN.

"This was definitely one of the toughest decisions I've ever had to make. USC didn't do anything wrong, and I love the staff there," Young said, according to 247Sports. "This was never about USC not meeting my expectations or anything, it was more about me feeling Alabama was too good of an opportunity to pass up. … I have total peace about it right now and I'm really excited about the incredible opportunity. I'm grateful for it and I'm going to be ready to go."

He spent his collegiate career at the University of Alabama

Looking back on his decision to attend Alabama instead of USC, Young said it wasn't a school he ever expected to attend. When he first started looking at colleges as a recruit, the idea of moving so far away from home was "a little scary" to him.

"I got to go on campus, I got to visit back when I was a recruit and I fell in love with it. I fell in love with the environment, with the facilities, with the coaching staff and with the culture," Young shared on his podcast. "It was something that was really different for me but being able to experience that and being able to see what it could bring both football-wise and off the field — everything that the university brings. It was something that I couldn't turn down."

He won the Heisman Trophy and numerous collegiate awards

It didn't take long for Young to become a standout player at Alabama. By his sophomore year, he had become the team's starting quarterback. That year, he broke the school's record for passing yards in a game — and by the end of the 2021 season, he had won the highly coveted Heisman Trophy. In his acceptance speech, Young opened up about feeling like an underdog.

"For me, I've always been someone who has been labeled as not the prototype. Being an African American quarterback, being quote-unquote undersized and not being that prototype, I've always been ruled out and counted out. People, a lot of times, have told me that I wasn't going to be able to make it," Young said.

He continued: "It's always been about not really proving them wrong, but proving to myself what I can accomplish. I always push myself to work the hardest, and I try my best to do all I can to maximize all I can do. Thanks to the people around me, and through the grace of God, I've been able to make it here, and I'm truly grateful for that."

During that same season, Young won the Associated Press College Football Player of the Year, the Manning Award, the Maxwell Award and the Davey O'Brien Award. He was also named SEC Offensive Player of the Year.

He entered the NFL Draft after his junior year

Following his junior year season at Alabama, Young announced he would forgo his senior season in order to enter the 2023 NFL Draft. Having finished his collegiate career with a stellar record, many analysts expected him to be the No. 1 selection.

Thanks to Young's impressive NFL prospects, he followed some unorthodox practices during the draft period. Not only did Young skip the NFL Scouting Combine drills in February, but he also canceled his remaining pre-draft visits after visiting with the Carolina Panthers, the Las Vegas Raiders and the Houston Texans, according to the NFL.

He was drafted by the Carolina Panthers

The Carolina Panthers drafted Young, the No. 1 pick, during the 2023 NFL Draft on April 27, 2023.

"I'm super excited and super blessed for this opportunity and for the organization to take a chance on me," the quarterback said during a post-draft press conference, according to FanNation.

To commemorate his transition into the NFL, Lowe's Home Improvement — who was responsible for building the 2023 NFL Draft stage — framed a piece of the stage for Young.

"The draft was a very surreal moment for me. It's an experience that I'll never forget," Young told PEOPLE. "I'm super grateful for what [Lowe's has] done for me and for all the rookies. Being able to have not just the thought and the memory, but the physical part of the stage is really surreal."

He isn't bothered by the comments about his size

Throughout his career, sports commentators and fans have commented on Young's stature — he's shorter and lighter than most professional football players. Coming in at 6 feet and 194 lbs. at Alabama, Young says he doesn't "really know too much about what's said" about him in the media — and he's not concerned.

"I've been this size, respectfully, my whole life," Young said during a press conference, per ESPN. "I know who I am, I know what I can do. For me, it's fair, everyone can speculate, ask me every question. I'm going to continue to control what I can control, continue to keep working my hardest. … I'm confident in myself. I know what I can do."

He models his game after Aaron Rodgers

Young has said he models his game after Aaron Rodgers, calling him "one of the best to do it." On his podcast, the football player said he was honored and humbled when Aaron's brother Jordan Rodgers compared Young's skills to that of Aaron.

"It's everything but specifically … the throws he makes, his accuracy and his ability to throw on and off platform from any angle," Young shared of what he admires in Rodgers. "He changes release point. That stuff … it's getting a little bit more and more popular in football nowadays but he's been doing that for a minute. He's a master. In my opinion, he's the most gifted physical passer ever."

He's not a big fan of social media

Young may have Instagram and Twitter accounts, but he doesn't post often. The football player says he's not a big fan of social media and prefers to focus on other things going on in his life.

"Honestly, I'm not really on social media too heavy. I don't know. It's not something that's a huge part of my life," Young told Boardroom of fans expressing they want him on their team. "I feel like everyone who's on social media or talking at home or watching TV, they have every right to believe what they want to believe, feel how they want to feel, and voice their opinions. But for me, it's believing in what I believe in, doing my best to be the best for the guys around me, and that's all I focus on."

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