Alabama athletics director Greg Byrne saw firsthand one January 2021 morning the work ethic that helped make DeVonta Smith great.
The dedication that turned Smith into a Heisman Trophy winner and an eventual Super Bowl champion; Smith, after winning the Super Bowl this past Sunday with the Philadelphia Eagles, became the first player in SEC history to achieve a unique trifecta: A Super Bowl, national championship and Heisman Trophy.
Byrne was one of the few in the room with Smith in Tuscaloosa back in 2021, who won football’s top award remotely because of COVID-19.
“The NEXT morning,” Byrne wrote, “at 6 a.m. there were 3 of us in the weight room on an off morning for the team. Me (I was doing my old man workout), Najee Harris, and the newly minted Heisman winner …. DeVonta Smith."
The Alabama football receiver capped his college career with the top award after a season in which he caught 117 passes for 1,856 yards and 23 touchdowns. The Crimson Tide went undefeated to win the national championship in 2020.
Then the Eagles drafted Smith with the 10th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Fast forward to 2025, and Smith caught a touchdown in the Super Bowl. That made him the first Alabama alumnus with a touchdown catch in the Super Bowl.
