Bear Bryant is widely regarded as one of college football’s all-time greatest head coaches. Now his great-grandson will be playing football for another all-time great.
Paul Tyson, a four-star pro-style Class of 2019 quarterback according to Rivals, announced his commitment to play for Alabama and head coach Nick Saban. What makes this commitment a tad different from your typical recruiting announcement is Tyson is the great-grandson of Bryant. Playing for Alabama may have felt like destiny given the family history.
“I felt the same calling that my Great Grandfather had when he was asked to come home,” Tyson said in a statement on Twitter, referencing Bryant’s decision to come coach at Alabama after previously coaching at Texas A&M. Bryant coached at Texas A&M from 1954 through 1957 and then moved to Alabama to coach the Tide from 1958 through 1982, where he coached Alabama to six national championships and 14 SEC titles. Saban has won five national titles at (six total) and five SEC titles (seven total) at Alabama.
Committed!!
— Paul Tyson (@Paul_Tyson17) April 5, 2018
The University of Alabama! #RollTide 🐘🔴⚪️ pic.twitter.com/k92wgBdM0A
Other schools Tyson was reportedly considering included LSU, Tennessee, Kentucky, Michigan, and Duke, but Alabama had long been considered a pretty easy favorite.