Vince Young

Infobox NFLactive


width=200
currentteam=Tennessee Titans
currentnumber=10
currentposition=Quarterback
birthdate=birth date and age|1983|5|18
birthplace=Houston, Texas
country=Texas
heightft=6
heightin=5
weight=233
debutyear=2006
debutteam=Tennessee Titans
college=Texas
draftyear=2006
draftround=1
draftpick=3
pastteams=
* Tennessee Titans (2006-present)
status=Active
highlights=
* Pete Dawkins Trophy (2002)
* Manning Award (2005)
* Davey O'Brien Award (2005)
* Archie Griffin Award (2005)
* Diet Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year (2006)
* AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year (2006)
* Pro Bowl selection (2006)
statweek=17
statseason=2007
statlabel1=TD-INT
statvalue1=21-30
statlabel2=Passing yards
statvalue2=4,745
statlabel3=QB Rating
statvalue3=69.0
nfl=YOU617196

Vincent Paul Young, Jr. (born May 18, 1983 in Houston, Texas), commonly Vince Young, or "VY",cite news | title=They're retiring Superman's cape, but who's next? | url=http://www.statesman.com/sports/content/sports/stories/longhorns/08/30/0830bohls.html | work=Austin American Statesman | publisher=Cox Entrprises | date=August 302008 | accessdate=2008-08-30] is an award-winning American football player. Young is a quarterback for the National Football League's Tennessee Titans. Young played college football for The University of Texas.

As a junior in college, Young finished second behind Reggie Bush in the voting for the Heisman Trophy, but did win the prestigous Davey O'Brien Award which is given annually to the best collegiate quarterback in the nation. Following the Heisman voting, Young led his team to a BCS National Championship against the defending BCS national champion, University of Southern California, in the 2006 Rose Bowl. The game was called one of the most-anticipated games in the history of college football. In 2006, ESPN named Young as the 10th best college football player of all time. [cite news|url=http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/columnist/weekendforecast/2005-11-30-column_x.htm | title=Title clashes add holiday-related stress for many | publisher=USA Today | author=Smith, Erick | date=November 30 2006 | accessdate=2006-12-15] Texas retired Young's jersey on August 302008.

Following the season, Young decided to forgo his last year of NCAA college eligibility and become a professional player by entering the 2006 NFL Draft, becoming the 3rd overall pick. In his rookie season, Young was named the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and earned a roster spot on the AFC Pro Bowl team.

Early years

Young grew up in a tough neighborhood in Houston, Texas where he was primarily raised by his mother and his grandmother. His father, Vincent Young Sr., missed much of Vince's college career due to a 2003 burglary conviction and prison sentence.Robbins, Kevin " [http://www.latimes.com/sports/college/football/rosebowl/la-statesman-youngsr31dec31,1,436039.story Watching a Stranger with a Father's Eyes] " "Los Angeles Times", December 31, 2005.] Young credits his mother and grandmother for keeping him away from the street gangs. At the age of 7, Young was struck by a vehicle while riding his bicycle at the corner of Tidewater and Buxley, streets in his Houston neighborhood. The accident nearly killed him, leaving him hospitalized for months after the bicycle's handle bar went into his stomach. Today, he credits this event for making him into a "tougher" individual. Vince Young wears the number 10 to show love and respect for his mother, Felicia Young, whose birthday is June 10th.Cite_web|url=http://www.houstontx.gov/mayor/gallery/vinceyoung.html |title=Vince Young Day in Houston, Texas - Jan. 10, 2006 |work=City of Houston Website |language=English |format=HTML |accessdate=2006-06-13]

High school career

Young was coached by Ray Seals at Madison High School in Houston, Texas where he started at quarterback (QB) for three years and compiled 12,987 yards of total offense during his career.Cite_web|url=http://www.mackbrown-texasfootball.com/pages/05.bios/young_vince.htm |title=Vince Young |work=MackBrowTexasFootball.com |language=English |format=HTML |accessdate=2006-06-13] During his senior season he led his Madison Marlins to a 61-58 victory in the 5A Regionals over the previously undefeated Galena Park North Shore Mustangs, while accounting for more than 400 yards of total offense and scoring three touchdowns passing and two more rushing before a crowd of 45,000 in the Houston Astrodome. [Cite_web|url=http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/colleges/texas/stories/112905dnspoutlede.8241d27.html |title=UT's Young a legend in Houston |work=Dallas Morning News |language=English |format=HTML |accessdate=2007-10-26] After beating Missouri City Hightower 56-22 in the state quarterfinals, Houston Madison faced Austin Westlake in the state semi-finals. Although Young completed 18-of-30 passes for 400 yards and five TDs and rushed for 92 yards (on 18 carries) and a TD, Houston Madison lost 42-48.

Among the honors Young received in high school were:
*being named "Parade"'s and "Student Sports"' National Player of the Year after compiling 3,819 yards and 59 touchdowns (TD) as a senior,Cite_web|url=http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/draft/prospect?contentId=5527518 |title=Vince Young Draft Profile |work=FoxSports.com |language=English |format=HTML |accessdate=2006-06-13]
*being named 2001 Texas 5A Offensive Player of the Year,Cite_web|url=http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/draft/prospect?contentId=5527518 |title=Vince Young Draft Profile |work=FoxSports.com |language=English |format=HTML |accessdate=2006-06-13]
*designation as "The Sporting News"'s top high school prospect,Cite_web|url=http://www.mackbrown-texasfootball.com/pages/05.bios/young_vince.htm |title=Vince Young |work=MackBrowTexasFootball.com |language=English |format=HTML |accessdate=2006-06-13]
*and the Pete Dawkins Trophy in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.Cite_web|url=http://www.mackbrown-texasfootball.com/pages/05.bios/young_vince.htm |title=Vince Young |work=MackBrowTexasFootball.com |language=English |format=HTML |accessdate=2006-06-13]

He was also a varsity athlete in numerous other sports. In basketball he played as a guard/forward and averaged more than 25 points per game over his career. This allowed him to be a four-year letterman and two-time all-district performer. In track and field he was a three-year letterman and member of two district champion 400-meter relay squads. In baseball he played for two seasons, spending time as both an outfielder and pitcher. He also made the all-state team in football and in track.Cite_web|url=http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/draft/prospect?contentId=5527518 |title=Vince Young Draft Profile |work=FoxSports.com |language=English |format=HTML |accessdate=2006-06-13]

College career

Young chose to sign with Texas in 2002 for its winning tradition and football prominence there. [cite news|url=http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/sanders/entries/2006/11/03/deion_sanders_has_15_questions.html|title=Deion Sanders has 15 questions for Vince Young|publisher="Austin American Statesman"|accessdate=2008-03-11|date=2006-11-03|author=Sanders, Deion] He was part of a Texas recruiting class, which contained future NFL players Rodrique Wright, Justin Blalock, Brian Robison, Kasey Studdard, Lyle Sendlein, David Thomas, Selvin Young, and Aaron Ross. [cite news | url=http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/commitlist.asp?Year=2002&School=81&Sport=1 | title=Texas 2002 Football Commitments | publisher=Rivals.com | accessdate=2008-01-31] This class has been cited as one of the strongest college recruiting classes ever. [cite news | url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-83040183.html | title=Ruling class: master recruiter Mack Brown helps Texas consistently bring in top talent, but the Longhorns' 2002 group--led by highly lauded quarterback Vincent Young--might be one of the best recruiting classes ever | publisher= The Sporting News | accessdate=2008-01-31] Young redshirted his freshman year; this allowed him to learn the playbook and develop his skills before being asked to play in a game situation.

As a redshirt freshman during the 2003 season, Young was initially 2nd on the depth chart behind Chance Mock. However, Mock was benched halfway through the season (in the game against Oklahoma) in favor of Young. After that game, Young and Mock alternated playing time, with Young's running ability complementing Mock's drop-back passing.

As a redshirt in the 2004 season, Young started every game and led the Longhorns to an 11-1 season record (losing only to rival Oklahoma), a top 5 final ranking, and the school's first-ever appearance and victory in the Rose Bowl, in which they defeated the University of Michigan. He began to earn his reputation as a dual-threat quarterback by passing for 1,849 and rushing for 1,189 yards. The Texas coaches helped facilitate this performance by changing the team offensive scheme from the more traditional I-formation to a Shotgun formation with 3 wide receivers. This change gave the offense more options in terms of play selection, and consequently made it more difficult to defend against.

Before his junior season, Young appeared on the cover of Dave Campbell's Texas Football alongside Texas A&M quarterback Reggie McNeal.

In his All-America 2005 season, Young led the Longhorns to an 11-0 regular season record. The Longhorns held a #2 ranking in the preseason, and held that ranking through the season except for one week when they were ranked #1 in the Bowl Championship Series.Veyhl, Jake. [http://www.dailytexanonline.com/media/paper410/news/2005/10/25/TopStories/Longhorns.No.1.For.First.Time.In.Bcs.Rankings-1032632.shtml Longhorns No. 1 for First Time in BCS] "The Daily Texan". October 25, 2005.] . Texas then won the Big 12 championship game and still held their #2 BCS ranking, which earned them a berth in the National Championship Rose Bowl game against the USC Trojans. Before the game, the USC Trojans were being discussed on ESPN and other media outlets as possibly the greatest college football team of all time. Riding a 34 game winning streak, including the previous National Championship, USC featured two Heisman Trophy winners in the backfield, including quarterback Matt Leinart (2004 Heisman winner) and running back Reggie Bush (2005 Heisman winner) who was widely discussed as being possibly the best running back in the history of college football.In the Rose Bowl, Vince Young put on one of the most dominating individual performances in college football history, accounting for 467 yards of total offense (200 rushing, 267 passing) and three rushing touchdowns (including a 9 yard TD scramble with 19 seconds left) to lead the Longhorns to a thrilling 41-38 victory. This performance led to him winning Rose Bowl MVP honors for the second consecutive season. After the game, former USC and NFL safety Ronnie Lott said "Vince Young is the greatest quarterback to ever play college football."Cite_web|url=http://www.houstontx.gov/mayor/gallery/vinceyoung.html |title=Vince Young Day in Houston, Texas - Jan. 10, 2006 |work=City of Houston Website |language=English |format=HTML |accessdate=2006-06-13] Trojans coach Pete Carroll said "that was the best [performance] I've seen by one guy."Cite_web|url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/stewart_mandel/01/05/rose.young/index.html |title=Running his way into history |work=SportsIllustrated.com |language=English |format=HTML |accessdate=2006-06-13] Young finished the season with 3,036 yards passing and 1,050 yards rushing earning him the Davey O'Brien Award.cite news | url=http://www.mackbrown-texasfootball.com/000_stats/05/teamcume.htm#TEAM.IND | title=2005 Overall Individual Statistics | publisher=MackBrownTexasFootball | accessdate=2007-01-15]

Early in his collegiate career, Vince Young had been criticized as "great rusher...average passer", and his unconventional throwing motion had been criticized as being "side-arm"Brown, Chip. [http://www.athlonsports.com/articles/3814/ In-Vince-ible] "Athlon Sports". August 8, 2005.] as opposed to the conventional "over the top" throwing motion typically used by college quarterbacks. However, by the 2005 season most of the criticism had faded, and he developed into a consistent and precise passer. Young concluded the 2005 regular season as the #1 rated passer in the nation. Including the Big 12 Championship game and the Rose Bowl, he finished as the #3 rated passer in the nation, with a quarterback rating of 163.9. [http://web1.ncaa.org/d1mfb/natlRank.jsp?div=4&rpt=IA_playerpasseff&site=org Division I-A National Player Report Passing Efficiency] "NCAA".]

Young reached a win/loss record as a starter of 30-2, ranking him #1 of all UT quarterbacks by number of wins. His .938 winning percentage as a starting quarterback ranks sixth best in Division I history. Young’s career passing completion percentage is the best in UT history, 60.8%. During his career at Texas (2003-05), Young passed for 6,040 yards (No. 5 in UT history) and 44 TDs (No. 4 in UT history) while rushing for 3,127 yards (No. 1 on UT’s all-time QB rushing list/No. 7 on UT’s all-time list) and 37 TDs (No. 5 on UT’s all-time rushing TDs list/Tied for No. 1 among QBs).cite news | url=http://www.mackbrown-texasfootball.com/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=&url_article_id=1877&change_well_id=2 | title=Rose Bowl Game Notes | publisher=MackBrownTexasFootball | accessdate=2006-12-31] He was also #10 on ESPN/IBM's list of the greatest college football players ever. In 2007, ESPN compiled a list of the top 100 plays in college football history; Vince Young's game-winning touchdown in the 2006 Rose Bowl ranked number 5. [cite news | title=Iconic moments for college football's time capsule | url=http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=maisel_ivan&id=2915514# | work=ESPN.com | publisher=The Disney Company | date=June 252007 | accessdate=2008-08-29]

The University of Texas retired Young's jersey number 10 in the 2008 season-opening football game on August 30, 2008. [cite press release|url=http://www.texassports.com/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=68&url_article_id=9267&url_subchannel_id=&change_well_id=2|title=Men's Athletics retires nine jersey numbers |publisher=Texas Athletics|date=2008-07-18|accessdate=2008-07-19]

College career statistics