Saban Reveals When Bryce Young’s Playing Status Will Be Determined

The quarterback left last Saturday’s game against Arkansas early after injuring his shoulder.

Alabama coach Nick Saban is still unsure if quarterback Bryce Young will start on Saturday vs. Texas A&M with his current shoulder injury.

As of Thursday, Saban said Young’s status will most likely be determined based on how the pregame warmups go on Saturday.

“Bryce has been practicing, and all week, he’s been saying that he could play,” Saban said, via ESPN. “But that’s going to be a medical decision. We’ve still got some time, and I want to talk more to Bryce. He’s the only one who knows how he feels because it’s going to be a pain tolerance thing. He’s a tough kid and great competitor. We’ll see where he is on game day.”

The 2021 Heisman Trophy winner injured his shoulder on a play last Saturday during the team’s 49–26 win over Arkansas. 

Saban said on Thursday that Young has no structural damage to his right throwing shoulder. The coach added that nothing is wrong with Young’s rotator cuff, and the junior isn’t expected to miss much time, if any time at all.

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Young was able to practice and throw some on Wednesday, but he was instructed by medical staff to not participate on Thursday so he could rest his shoulder.

“There was no reason for him to throw a lot this week, because if he does, it’s not going to get better. It’s just going to aggravate it [his shoulder],” Saban said. “Our doctors are saying that if you hold off as much as you can, then that’s the best chance that he’s got.”

So far this season, Young has thrown for 1,202 yards, 14 touchdowns and three interceptions, along with scoring three rushing touchdowns.

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