Pictured L-R: DJ Pearson, Craig & Julie Young (his parents), Bryce Young, his football coach at Cathedral, Kevin Pearson, and Pearson’s wife, Annalee

College Football:

By Brian Reed-Baiotto, Sports Editor

For the first time in history, an athlete raised in the City of Pasadena has earned the Heisman Trophy.

Bryce Young played the first two years of his high school career at Cathedral, and he would finish his remarkable prep run at Mater Dei.

The Alabama sophomore was in New York on Saturday evening to receive the most coveted award in all of college sports.

And the landslide in which he won the Heisman Trophy is almost as impressive as Young’s on-the-field prowess.

Young earned 2,311 points, which was 1,375 more than second-place Aidan Hutchinson, a University of Michigan defensive end.

Young tallied 685 first-place votes, 107 second & 45 had him as their number three choice.

He also became Alabama’s first quarterback ever to win the Heisman Trophy.

Looking back at his history as a quarterback, those who know the 20-year-old are thrilled, but not shocked by his success.

And that’s because Young has a track record of great things during the second years of his career at the high school and college level.

As a freshman, the Phantoms QB split time with senior Andrew Tovar.

Young completed 126 of his 192 pass attempts for 1,445 yards.

He threw 14 TD’s and was picked six times.

Fast forward to 2020, and Young threw the ball just 22 times at Alabama, in a relief role of Mac Jones.

But just as he did at Cathedral, his sophomore season at Alabama was one for the record books.

At Cathedral in 2017, Young went 264 of 379 for 3,431 yards.

He tossed 41 TD’s and was intercepted four times during that sophomore season.

Through the first 13 games of this 2021 season in Tuscaloosa, Young and the Crimson Tide are 12-1, and currently sit as the top-ranked program in America.

Thanks to their QB and his teammates, Alabama will face Cincinnati (13-0) in the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 31, and with a victory, they would meet the winner of the Michigan-Georgia game on Jan. 10 in Indianapolis, and with the National Championship on the line.

Young’s part in Alabama’s success this year includes having completed 314 of his 462 pass attempts for 4,322 yards.

Thus far, he’s thrown for 43 TD’s and four picks, and rushed for three scores.

College football fans throughout the nation know what a special athlete he is, but those of us in Southern California know he’s also a great student and young man.

His parents, Craig and Julie Young, deserve a ton of credit for the character and code of decency that their son displays daily.

It might sound odd to say a 20-year-old athlete is old school, but if you’ve seen him play, you’d get it.

In his freshman year in Los Angeles, Young’s maturity was off the charts.

Whenever he’d throw a TD pass, Young was never the kind of kid that celebrated to an extreme level, nor did he taunt or disrespect an opponent.

That’s not the way Craig and Julie Young raised their son.

He was business like, where he’d jog back to the sidelines, and get ready for the next offensive series.

This kid is also the epitome of a winner.

During his prep career, Cathedral and Mater Dei went a combined 47-5 with Young behind center.

His high school stats were ridiculous.

Young completed 915 of 1,311 for 13,250 yards.

He compiled 152 passing TD’s, was picked 21 times and had a combined 70-percent completion ratio.

Young also rushed for just under 1,100 yards and scored another 26 TD’s with his legs.

Although his time at Cathedral was limited to just two seasons, he made quite an impression from the jump.

Former La Salle (Angelus League competitor) High School coach/current Antelope Valley College offensive coordinator Russell Gordon described Young this way.

Said Russell Gordon: “I met Bryce when he was in middle school and I knew (along with the rest of the world) that he was something special. After coaching against Bryce, it was evident that he was extremely bright. He was not only the QB at Cathedral, he was the coach on the field. He was and is a fierce competitor, who will always be prepared for his opponent, and that shows in every aspect of his life. Bryce is a young man of faith, character and has strong family values. In 27 years of coaching, he is the smartest and most talented QB I have coached against. I’m sure the collegiate coaches are saying the same thing and in time, so will the NFL coaches. I’m happy and excited for Bryce and the Young family.”

One of Gordon’s best players during his run at La Salle included defensive end, Myles Cecil, who plays for Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

Much like Young, Myles Cecil’s character and work ethic are unimpeachable.

“Bryce is freaking insane,” Cecil said. “He has crazy arm talent and he’s the best pocket presence I’ve ever seen. It seems like he’s got eyes in the back of his head, because every time it seemed like you had a shot at him, he could sense it and get rid of the ball. He’s obviously a bright quarterback and person and that’s something I have always respected about him.”

Ted Corcoran, who has spent nearly two decades on the coaching staff at St. Francis said, “we knew right off the bat that he was good, because Bryce was sharing time at quarterback with a very talented and successful senior (Andrew Tovar) when he was just a freshman. In spite of being so young, he had composure and was savvy beyond his years.”

Last but not least was his coach at Cathedral, Kevin Pearson, who now heads the Warren High School football program.

In spite of leaving after his sophomore campaign to play for the best program in America, Mater Dei, Pearson and Young’s whole family remain close to this day.

In fact, as you saw in the photo, Pearson and his family were in attendance to see this bright and talented young man earn his spot in college football’s most elite club.

Pearson has known Bryce since the seventh grade, and just recently, the Bears coach joked with Mr. Young that “had I started Bryce his freshman year, he would probably own every high school record that a quarterback could attain.”

It goes without saying that all of Young’s coaches and teammates marveled at his talent and intellect, but Pearson spent more time talking about what a great young man and role model Bryce Young is and should be for millions of student-athletes.

Pearson said Young’s preparation and football IQ is second to none.

“He’s an even better young man than he is a football player, and that says so much,” Pearson said. “I love Bryce and his family and it was an honor to be there to watch him rightfully receive his Heisman Trophy. He just lived out the dream that every football player has, and to be a small part of that journey means so much to me and my family. No one deserves this more than Bryce.”

On a personal note, this writer only saw him play once in person, which was back on October 28 of 2016, when Cathedral hosted St. Francis in a battle of 8-0 programs and with the Angelus League title on the line.

The Phantoms defeated the Golden Knights, 24-17, that night, and clinched the league championship.

As anyone who has ever been to a Cathedral home game knows, the parking around the Los Angeles school is about as bad as it gets.

And while many of his teammates were understandably elated to win their back-and-forth, drama-filled showdown with St. Francis, I can recall walking from the field to a pay-to-park lot so I could head back to Glendora.

The lighting wasn’t great, but I could make out that one of the kids was Bryce Young.

He had his street clothes on, and as excited as teens get after big wins, there was one guy out of the entire group that was having a reserved conversation with a smile on his face.

And that guy was Cathedral freshman, Bryce Young.

It goes without saying that we wish Bryce all the best, and regardless if you love or hate Cathedral, Mater Dei or Alabama, Bryce Young is exactly the kind of young man that you want your son to emulate or your daughter to marry.

Heisman Trophy Votes:
1- Bryce Young, Alabama QB: 2,311 points (685 1st-place votes, 107 second & 45 third)
2- Aidan Hutchinson, Michigan DE: 954 (78 first, 273 second, 174 third)
3- Kenny Pickett, Pitt QB: 631 (28 first, 175 second, 197 third)
4- CJ Stroud, Ohio State QB: 399 (12 first, 118 second, 127 third)
5- Will Anderson Jr., Alabama LB: 325 (31 first, 79 second, 74 third)
6- Kenneth Walker III, Mich State RB: 245 (18 first, 53 second, 85 third)
7- Matt Corral, Ol3 Miss QB: 150 (10 first, 32 second, 56 third)
8- Desmond Ritter, Cincy QB: 81 (5 first, 15 second, 36 third)
9- Jordan Davis, Georgia DL: 75 (nine first, 15 second, 19 third)
10- Breece Hall, Iowa State RB: 17 (0 first, five second, seven third)

Bryce Young’s Prep Career Stats:
2019 at Mater Dei: (12-1)
Passing: 294-409 for 4,528 yards, 58 TD’s, six INTs, 72 pct
Rushing: 79 carries for 357 yards & 10 TD’s

2018 at Mater Dei: (14-1)
Passing: 231-331 for 3,846 yards, 39 TD’s, 6 picks, 70 pct com
Rushing: 72 carries for 286 yards & 4 TD’s

2017 at Cathedral: (10-2)
Passing: 264-379 for 3,431 yards 41 TD’s, 3 INTs 70 percent completion ratio
Rushing: 76 carries for 287 yards & 8 TD’s

2016 at Cathedral: (11-1)
Passing: 126 of 192 for 1,445 yards, 14 TD’s & 6 INTs, 66 completion ratio.
Rushing: 41 carries for 154 & 4 TDs

High School Career Stats:
Combined Record: 47-5
Passing: 915-1,311, 13,250 yards, 152 TD’s & 21 INT’s
Rushing: 268-1,084, 26 TD’s