A Look at Alabama's A-Day MVPs in the Nick Saban Era

Nick Saban will tell you the stats don't matter. Outside of a steak dinner Sunday, neither does the score. Nevertheless, this weekend’s A-Day game is bound to be followed by a series of snapshot evaluations.

New heroes will be hyped up well into the summer while signs of potential pitfalls will be picked apart from every angle. Such is life with the limited public access Alabama provides.

Spring success hardly guarantees the same results in the fall. Agiye Hall made headlines in last year’s A-Day game but went on to record more retweets than receptions during his lone season with the Crimson Tide.

Still, the scrimmage can serve as a coming-out party for future stars. Bryce Young took home MVP honors last year before becoming the first Alabama quarterback to win the Heisman Trophy. John Metchie III was the top performer during his freshman season in 2019. While the star receiver had a quiet debut season for the Crimson Tide, he developed into a top target over the past two years.

Mac Jones’ success at Alabama was foreshowed during the 2018 A-Day game. However, the quarterback shared the honor with kicker Joseph Bulovas, who experienced a much different path moving forward.

T.J. Yeldon is the only player to earn multiple A-Day MVPs under Saban, taking home the award for three straight years from 2012-14. He put together stellar seasons following each of those performances, finishing his three-year college career with 3,322 rushing yards and 37 scores on the ground.

Will Young repeat as A-Day MVP this year, or will a new player ascend into the spotlight? Will this year’s performance lead to a promising Alabama career or end up being a piece of forgotten trivia? Those questions will be answered over time and are sure to be discussed over the next few months.

Until then, here is a look at each of Alabama’s A-Day MVPs in the Nick Saban era and how they fared after earning the honor.

A-Day MVPs

2021: Bryce Young, QB

2021 A-Day stats: 25 of 44 (56.8%), 333 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT

2021 stats: 366 of 547 (66.9%), 4,872 yards, 47 TDs, 7 INTs, 3 rushing TDs

2019: John Metchie III, WR

2019 A-Day stats: 5 receptions, 133 yards

2019 stats: 4 receptions, 23 yards

2020 stats: 55 receptions, 916 yards, 6 TDs

2020 stats: 96 receptions, 1,142 yards, 8 TDs

2018: Mac Jones, QB/Joseph Bulovas, PK

Jones 2018 A-Day stats: 23 of 35 (65.7%), 289 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT

Bulovas 2018 A-Day stats: 5 of 7 (71.4) FGs

Jones 2018 stats: 5 of 13 (38.4%), 123 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT

Bulovas 2018 stats: 14 of 18 (77.8%) FGs, 75 of 81 (92.6%) EPs

Jones 2019 stats: 97 of 141 (68.8%), 1,503 yards, 14 TDs, 3 INTs

Bulovas 2019 stats: 8 of 11 (72.7%) FGs, 59 of 61 (96.7%) EPs

Jones 2020 stats: 311 of 402 (77.4), 4,500 yards, 41 Tds, 4 INTs

Bulovas 2021 stats: 14 of 19 (73.7%) FGs, 15 of 15 EPs

2017: Jerry Jeudy, WR

2017 A-Day stats: 5 catches, 134 yards, 2 TDs

2017 stats: 14 receptions, 264 yards, 2 TDs

2018 stats: 68 receptions, 1,315 yards, 14 TDs

2019 stats: 77 receptions, 1,163 yards, 10 TDs

2016: Damien Harris, RB

2016 A-Day stats: 20 carries, 114 yards, 2 receptions, 20 yards

2016 stats: 146 carries, 1,037 yards, 2 rushing TDs, 14 receptions, 99 yards, 2 receiving TDs

2017 stats: 135 carries, 1,000 yards, 11 rushing TDs, 12 receptions, 91 yards

2018 stats: 150 carries, 874 yards, 9 rushing TDs, 22 receptions, 204 yards

2015: Robert Foster, WR/ArDarius Stewart, WR

Foster 2015 A-Day stats: 6 receptions, 125 yards

Stewart 2015 A-Day stats: 8 receptions, 118 yards, 2 TDs

Foster 2015 stats: 10 receptions, 116 yards, 2 TDs

Stewart 2015 stats: 63 receptions, 700 yards 4 TDs

Foster 2016 stats: 5 receptions, 55 yards, 0 TDs

Stewart 2016 stats: 54 receptions, 864 yards, 8 TDs

Foster 2017 stats: 14 receptions, 174 yards, 1 TD

2014: T.J. Yeldon, RB

2014 A-Day stats: 11 carries, 95 yards, 1 TD, 1 reception, 9 yards

2014 stats: 194 carries, 979 yards, 11 rushing TDs, 15 receptions, 180 yards 1 receiving TD

2013: T.J. Yeldon, RB

2013 A-Day stats: 15 carries, 69 yards, 1 TD, 7 receptions, 60 yards

2013 stats: 207 carries, 1,235 yards, 14 TDs, 20 receptions, 183 yards

2014 stats: 194 carries, 979 yards, 11 rushing TDs, 15 receptions, 180 yards 1 receiving TD

2012: T.J. Yeldon, RB

2012 A-Day stats: 16 carries, 88 yards, 5 receptions, 91 yards, 1 TD

2012 stats: 175 carries, 1,108 yards, rushing 12 TDs, 11 receptions, 131 yards, 1 receiving TD

2013 stats: 207 carries, 1,235 yards, 14 TDs, 20 receptions, 183 yards

2014 stats: 194 carries, 979 yards, 11 rushing TDs, 15 receptions, 180 yards 1 receiving TD

2011: Trent Richardson, RB

2011 A-Day stats: 9 carries, 49 yards, seven receptions, 85 yards, 1 TD

2011 stats: 283 carries, 1,679 yards, 21 rushing TDs, 29 receptions, 338 yards, 3 receiving TDs

2010: Mark Ingram, RB

2010 A-Day stats: 9 carries, 90 yards

2010 stats: 158 carries, 875 yards, 13 rushing TDs, 21 receptions, 282 yards, 1 receiving TD

2009: Greg McElroy, QB/Marquis Maze, WR

McElroy 2009 A-Day stats: 16 of 30 (53.3%), 189 yards, 2 TDs

Maze 2009 A-Day stats: 87 receiving yards, 47 rushing yards

McElroy 2009 stats: 198 of 325 (60.9%), 2,508 yards, 17 TDs, 4 INTs, 1 rushing TD

Maze 2009 stats: 31 receptions, 523 yards 2 TDs

McElroy 2010 stats: 222 of 313 (70.9%), 2,987, 20 TDs, 5 INTs, 1 rushing TD

Maze 2010 stats: 38 receptions, 557 yards, 3 TDs

Maze 2011 stats: 56 receptions, 627 yards, 1 TD

2008: Terry Grant, RB

2008 A-Day stats: 6 carries, 21 yards, 4 receptions 87 yards, 2 TDs

2008 stats: 35 carries, 88 yards, 1 TD, 4 receptions, 36 yards

2009 stats: 40 carries, 166 yards, 3 TDs, 3 receptions, 47 yards

2007: D.J. Hall, WR

2007 A-Day stats: 5 catches, 87 yards, 1 TD

2017 stats: 67 receptions, 1,005 yards, 6 TDs,