Jumbo Package: Bryce Young elevated to Carolina Panthers starting QB

Happy Friday, everyone. As Roger already reported, Alabama will open Super Regional play at top-ranked Wake Forest tomorrow. It will be a whale of an upset if Alabama topples the Demon Deacons.

Other than that, the biggest news of the day was Bryce Young’s elevation to the top of the depth chart in Charlotte.

“Bryce has taken the snaps with the ones this week,” Reich said on Thursday. “That was something at the beginning that (general manager) Scott (Fitterer) and I kind of earmarked the time when we thought would be best. Kind of mapping out, talked it through with the staff, you know, at the beginning of the offseason, this was kind of the time that we had marked this week to just kind of move him up.

“It’s just the next step. There’s really nothing to say other than, ‘Hey, we just wanted to move him up this week.’ Felt like it’s been the right time. He had a couple weeks to watch Andy (Dalton). That was really good stuff. Andy’s continued to perform at a very high level. Bryce is doing well. Matt (Corral) is doing well. Just trying to get our team ready.”

Alabama’s junior senator seemed to enjoy talking NIL with Nick Saban.

Katie Windham over at SI compiled Alabama football projections from the various publications that do such things.

For the first time in several seasons, there’s a lot of uncertainty around an Alabama team. Saban has continued to recruit at a high level, so even with a new starter at quarterback this season and multiple starters from last season off to the NFL, there are still high expectations around the 2023 team because of all the talent available.

Ever since he came to Tuscaloosa in 2007, Saban has helped the Crimson Tide get back to being the premier program in college football. However, Saban prodigy Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs have won back-to-back national championships. The Bulldogs are preseason No. 1

The Big Ten rolled out their new schedule format, and the name sounds like that extended car warranty they keep calling about.

The Big Ten unveiled its new scheduling model and matchups for the 2024 and 2025 regular seasons on Thursday, ushering in the new era for a 16-team conference that stretches from coast to coast.

The model, as The Athletic previously reported, is more flexible than the formats peer conferences are using. It is called the Flex Protect Plus, and it gives each Big Ten team up to three protected annual opponents and cycles through all of the teams in the rest of the league. Each Big Ten team will play every other team in the league over a two-year span.

No word on whether the Flex Protect Plus covers floor mats.

Last, Miss Terry decided she’d break Alabama internet with this one.

“I think us having our grandchildren really brought out the softer side of Nick,” Terry Saban said. “To see him on the floor playing with the babies, it really changes who you are. And then to see these children who are having a really tough time, you can’t help but be heartbroken when they come in and then be happy for them when they leave, that maybe you did just one little thing to brighten their day.

Talking about Nick becoming a softy is very triggering for a segment of the fanbase.

That’s about it for today. Have a great weekend.

Roll Tide.