Tyrone Young

{{Infobox NFL biography

| name = Tyrone Young

| image =

| image_size =

| alt =

| caption =

| number = 89

| position = Wide receiver

| birth_date = {{Birth date|1960|4|29|mf=y}}

| birth_place = Ocala, Florida, U.S.

| death_date = {{Death date and age|2015|10|15|1960|4|29|mf=y}}

| death_place = San Diego, California, U.S.

| height_ft = 6

| height_in = 6

| weight_lbs = 190

| high_school = Ocala (FL) Forest

| college = Florida

| undraftedyear = 1983

| pastteams =

New Orleans Saints (1983–1984)

| highlights =

| statleague = NFL

| statlabel1 = Receptions

| statvalue1 = 36

| statlabel2 = Receiving yards

| statvalue2 = 682

| statlabel3 = Touchdowns

| statvalue3 = 6

| pfr = YounTy00

}}

Tyrone Donnive Young (April 29, 1960 – October 15, 2015) was an American college and professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for two seasons during the 1980s. Young played college football for the University of Florida, and thereafter, he played professionally for the NFL's New Orleans Saints.

Early life

Young was born in Ocala, Florida in 1960.Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players, [https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/Y/YounTy00.htm Tyrone Young]. Retrieved August 5, 2010. He attended Forest High School in Ocala,databaseFootball.com, Players, {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20100212023909/http://databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=YOUNGTYR01 Tyrone Young]}}. Retrieved August 5, 2010. and he was the quarterback for the Forest Wildcats high school football team.Bud Crussell, "[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=srcVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=yg4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=6667,4141730&dq=tyrone-young&hl=en Tyrone Young: He Has Had Some Challenging Times]," Ocala Star-Banner (January 9, 1981). Retrieved August 6, 2010. Young led the Wildcats to back-to-back Florida state football championships in 1975 and 1976.

College career

Young accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Doug Dickey and coach Charley Pell's Florida Gators football teams from 1978 to 1982.[http://web.gatorzone.com/football/media/2011/media_guide.pdf 2011 Florida Gators Football Media Guide] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402035222/http://web.gatorzone.com/football/media/2011/media_guide.pdf |date=April 2, 2012 }}, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 143–146, 157, 186 (2011). Retrieved August 31, 2011. The Gators coaching staff decided to red-shirt him as a true freshman in 1978, but he subsequently worked his way up the depth chart to briefly become the Gators' starting quarterback. He subsequently changed positions to wide receiver and was paired with another converted quarterback, Cris Collinsworth, as the Gators' star flankers. During Young's sophomore season in 1980, he was a member of the Gators team that posted the biggest one-year turnaround in the history of NCAA Division I footballNorm Carlson, University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators, Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia, pp. 95–96 (2007).—from 0–10–1 in 1979College Football Data Warehouse, [http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/active/f/florida/yearly_results.php?year=1975 Florida Yearly Results 1975–1979] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304055241/http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/active/f/florida/yearly_results.php?year=1975 |date=March 4, 2016 }}. Retrieved July 18, 2010. to an 8–4 bowl team in 1980.College Football Data Warehouse, [http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/active/f/florida/yearly_results.php?year=1980 Florida Yearly Results 1980–1984] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151118020442/http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/active/f/florida/yearly_results.php?year=1980 |date=November 18, 2015 }}. Retrieved July 18, 2010. Memorably, Young caught ten passes for 183 yards against the Georgia Bulldogs in 1980, which remains the eighth best single-game performance by a Gators wide receiverPat Dooley, "[http://www.gainesville.com/article/20151016/articles/151019771 Tyrone Young, former star football player at UF, dies at 55]," The Gainesville Sun (October 16, 2015). Retrieved October 16, 2015. He also caught a fifty-one-yard touchdown reception against the Florida State Seminoles in 1981.

Young graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in 1988.

Professional career

The New Orleans Saints signed Young as an undrafted free agent in 1983,Jack Hairston, "[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Y5ERAAAAIBAJ&sjid=1-kDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2868,1470380&dq=tyrone-young&hl=en New Orleans Saints Sign Tyrone Young]," The Gainesville Sun (May 20, 1983). Retrieved August 6, 2010. and he played for the Saints in {{NFL Year|1983}} and {{NFL Year|1984}}.National Football League, Historical Players, [http://www.nfl.com/players/tyroneyoung/profile?id=YOU611982 Tyrone Young]. Retrieved August 5, 2010. He saw limited action in his rookie season, but had almost 600 yards receiving as a second-year pro. In his two NFL seasons, Young played in thirty-two games and had thirty-six receptions for 682 yards and six touchdowns.

Death

Young died on October 15, 2015, in San Diego, California from multiple myeloma, which was first diagnosed in 2004. He was 55 years old.

References

Bibliography

Carlson, Norm, University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators, Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). {{ISBN|0-7948-2298-3}}.
Golenbock, Peter, Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory, Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). {{ISBN|0-9650782-1-3}}.
Hairston, Jack, Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told, Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). {{ISBN|1-58261-514-4}}.
McCarthy, Kevin M., [https://books.google.com/books?id=_Tk-IQepI6cC Fightin' Gators: A History of University of Florida Football], Arcadia Publishing, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (2000). {{ISBN|978-0-7385-0559-6}}.
Nash, Noel, ed., The Gainesville Sun Presents The Greatest Moments in Florida Gators Football, Sports Publishing, Inc., Champaign, Illinois (1998). {{ISBN|1-57167-196-X}}.