Article on Young from Dennis Dodd. He makes an interesting point about VY's 59% completion rate being the career best at Texas.
http://www.sportsline.com/collegefootball/story/8345399/1
AUSTIN, Texas -- It started as an informal lunch. Mack Brown and reporters munching on some Mexican in a conference room, talking spring practice.
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Vince Young just might add some larger hardware than the Rose Bowl MVP. (Getty Images) </TD><TD width=15> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>Why, look who just happened to drop by? It's Vince Young.
And he's wanting to chat.
Guess who's Heisman campaign had just been unofficially kicked off?
OK, so it was only March, and there was as much storytellin' as interviewin' that day, but it was convenient that
Texas' quarterback was there. It's never too early for these types of things, and Young
is is the heart of the most important Texas season in years.
For one, the 'Horns figure to be favored to win the Big 12 (and, by extension, the Oklahoma game). They'll almost certainly start in the preseason top five in the polls.
That's what happens when your quarterback has a breakthrough year, running through a slack-jawed Michigan defense in the Rose Bowl. Young almost single-handedly (and footedly) befuddled the Wolverines with 372 yards in total offense and five touchdowns in the one-point victory. His life is changing so quickly he can barely keep track. Young now suspects his girlfriend of four years was recently approached by an agent's runner. A group of fans wanted to throw him a birthday party -- at which the quarterback would sign autographs for them.
"You'll be walking with friends or at a restaurant and people will come over and want to take a picture," Young said. "The Rose Bowl is over, but it's still like it's yesterday. During spring break in Miami, a lot of folks noticed me down there."
Of course, Orangebloods can't get enough. Their next viewing of actual competition is Saturday in the spring game. From there it's short jump to September, when Young is one of 17 Texas starters trying to improve on last year's 11-1 record and No. 5 finish.
Credit Young, who finally got it in 2004. There were some admitted struggles with Brown and offensive coordinator Greg Davis trying to fit Young, a redshirt junior, into a drop-back box. At some point, all three agreed that it was best to let Young do what he does best.
"When I worked for Coach Switzer, he said, 'Don't ever have a guy in the game if he touches the ball, he can't score with it,'" Brown said. "Vince can take a third-and-7, scramble and throw, or he can run 60 yards."
Michigan never did figure that out. Lloyd Carr chose to concentrate on All-Big 12 running back Cedric Benson. Not a bad strategy, but the Wolverines ignored -- or couldn't account for -- Young, a 6-foot-5, 230-pounder who rushed for a Texas single-game quarterback record 192 yards and four touchdowns. Add a passing touchdown, and Young assembled one of the biggest days ever for a Texas quarterback.
"You know he can run, and you want to help his passing, so subconsciously you're saying, 'This is a known, let's leave it alone,'" Brown said. "But you get to a point where you work so much on the other side (passing) that you take away from the other great gift."
Perception: Young can't throw a beach ball in the ocean.
Fact: He is the most accurate passer in school history after two seasons -- 59 percent.
Perception: Young isn't a clutch player. In the biggest game of the season, he fumbled twice against Oklahoma.
Fact: Young led his team from behind in the season's last six games.
The Oklahoma State comeback was one of the ages. Trailing 35-7 three seconds before halftime, Texas scored seven consecutive touchdowns. Brown missed only three of 21 passes and rushed for 123 yards.
Perception: Young can't read a defense, relying more on his athleticism.
Fact: Young already has been looking at Ohio State film in preparation for one of the season's early Armageddon games, Sept. 10 in Columbus.
"Don't know what kind of defense they're coming at us with," he said. "Might as well get a mental picture of it right now."
First order of business for Texas opponents: Assign a spy to Young, who with his 4.4 speed can bolt at any time. Second, pray.
"(Michigan) tried," Young said, "but I was messing the guy up."
Before that breakout Rose Bowl, Young's legs kept alive Texas' season at Kansas. Facing a fourth-and-18, Young saw the entire defense turn his back on him while it chased receivers. Young pulled the ball down, pump-faked after getting past the line of scrimmage and picked up the first down. Then his arm won it: Young threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Tony Jeffery for the victory with 11 seconds left.
The only blemish: the Oklahoma game, when he completed only eight of 23 and ran for only 54 yards. Young was sacked three times; two of those took his team out of field goal range in a 12-0 loss.
But that was one heck of a blemish for a program that has endured five consecutive losses to the Sooners. Young is 17-2 as a starter, heading toward becoming the winningest Longhorns quarterback in history. But guess who hung those two losses on him.
"There were some times when Vince probably questioned myself and Greg Davis because it didn't go easily for him," Brown said. "Vince would make great plays, but he wasn't ready to take over the game and lead the team. He became a quarterback instead of a great athlete."
The early struggles led to speculation that Young's professional future was as a receiver. A visit to Steve McNair's camp in high school squashed that. The two became friends after Young became MVP of the camp.
"You hear it all the time (receiver) but I want to be a quarterback," Young said. "Steve McNair inspired me a whole lot."
So does his mother, who calls every morning at 5 o'clock with the Bible verse of the day.
"Sometimes I wake up and listen to her," he said smiling. "Sometimes, I wake up and get it off the answering machine."
The best inspiration might have come from cocksure recruit Ryan Perrilloux. The Louisiana product committed to Texas last year, in part, because Young told him the job would be open after the 2005 season. Young, Perrilloux contended, was headed to the NFL after that.
While Young doesn't dispute telling Perrilloux that, he does say the prodigy has a lot of growing up to do.
"I told him to come here and I'd take him under my wing," Young said. "I'd show him the offense, how to play the game we love to play. Show him how much love you get, how much coaching you get. I told him about the thing he doesn't see."
At the last minute, Perrilloux signed with LSU.
"His head is kind of a little bit big right now," Young said. "I was like that coming in, until I got hit in the head out there in practice. I had to calm down and shut my mouth and learn the game. Until he sees that, sees his first game, gets hit his first practice, he's going to be different."
And way behind a Heisman candidate who's been there, and finally got it.
