Quarterback Bo Nix Named the 2025 Alabama Pro Athlete of the Year

The drafting of Bo Nix in the first round by the Denver Broncos was greeted with the sort of disdain reserved for a really terrible movie. Were Rotten Tomatoes to have an NFL cousin, Nix might have registered somewhere around 28 percent. Said the critics:

“It feels like Denver could have gotten more value here.”

“I don’t love Nix.”

“Nix has the most to prove out of the five quarterbacks selected in the first round this season.”

“It will be interesting to see if he has the game to warrant the 12th overall selection.”

But, by week 10 of his rookie season, another review came in for Nix, whom the Alabama Sports Writers Association is honoring as 2025 Professional Athlete of the Year.

Denver coach Sean Payton was doing the customary handshakes following a game when the opposing quarterback approached him. “You got one,” the QB said of Nix and the Broncos’ draft-day steal. A quarterback named Patrick Mahomes.

In two NFL seasons, the former Pinson Valley High star has proven his worth in Denver. As a rookie, he led the Broncos to their first NFL playoff appearance since 2015 when Peyton Manning was behind center. He passed for 3,375 yards and 29 touchdowns.

There was no sophomore slump in 2025. Some 3,391 yards and 26 TDs. Those may be modest compared to some NFL gunslingers, but this is the stat that counts the most: Denver was 15-3 with Nix as a starter, including a playoff stunner against Buffalo. Alas, on the penultimate play of the game, Nix suffered a broken ankle, sidelining him for the next round and requiring surgery.

Nix, whose father Patrick was his head coach at Pinson Valley, certainly has had a college career that endorsed Denver’s draft choice. He played three seasons at Auburn, the first two under Gus Malzahn, the last under Bryan Harsin. He transferred to Oregon, going 10-3 his first season, 11-1 the next. He was the Pac 12 Offensive Player of the Year, leading the nation in completions and completion percentage in 2023 and topping the conference in TD passes. He started in 61 college games, an NCAA record.

Despite the broken ankle, this has been a joyous offseason for Nix. His wife Izzy, a former Auburn cheerleader, gave birth to a daughter Riley Belle, on February 25, which is also Patrick’s birthday.
Recently Nix wrote an open letter to his infant daughter for “The Players’ Tribune:

“At some point, you’ll probably hear that I was benched and broken at Auburn. That I fell just short at Oregon. And that I was the last quarterback taken in the first round. I’ve been doubted. I’ve been dismissed. And I have my fair share of critics.

“Those things don’t feel good. … Every comment felt personal. Every doubt felt like disrespect. I developed a chip on my shoulder.

“But I’ve learned that the chip can’t become your identity. It breaks too easily. It’s too fragile. My relationship with Jesus Christ, however, is not. He is my identity … I learned that my value isn’t tied to a depth chart, a draft position, an injury report, or a stat line. I love and thrive on competition. I compete at literally everything. But I don’t play for approval. I play for a higher purpose.”

— Story by ASWA Hall of Fame writer Mark McCarter.

Alabama Pro Athlete of the Year

2022 Bo Nix
2024 Jalen Hurts
2023 Gunnar Henderson
2022 Jalen Hurts
2021 Trevon Diggs
2020 Derrick Henry
2019 Derrick Henry
2018 Philip Rivers
2017 Justin Thomas
2016 Julio Jones
2015 Cam Newton
2014 Deontay Wilder
2013 Jason Dufner
2012 Craig Kimbrel
2011 Cam Newton
2010 Graeme McDowell
2009 Stewart Cink
2008 Mo Williams
2007 Jake Peavy
2006 DeMeco Ryans
2005 Shaun Alexander
2004 Ben Wallace
2003 Shaun Alexander
2002 Ben Wallace
2001 Shaun Alexander
2000 Tim Hudson
1999 Tim Hudson
1998 Ronald McKinnon
1997 Frank Thomas
1996 Kevin Greene
1995 Robert Horry
1994 Frank Thomas
1993 Frank Thomas
1992 Davey Allison
1991 Frank Thomas
1990 Charles Barkley
1989 Bo Jackson
1988 Corneilus Bennett
1987 Jimmy Key
1986 Charles Barkley
1985 John Hannah
1984 Ozzie Newsome
1983 Bobby Allison
1982 Andrew Toney
1981 Dieter Brock
1980 William Andrews
1979 John Stallworth
1978 Bobby Allison
1977 Hubert Green
1976 Jerry Pate
1975 Kenny Stabler
1974 Henry Aaron

Alabama Crimson Tide On SI/BamaCentral is the online home of the Alabama Sports Writers Association.

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