It doesn't matter where you are from or what team you root for, if you hear the name Vince Young, your mind immediately goes to one place. Nobody will ever forget the Texas quarterback's nine-yard touchdown scramble to win the national championship, and his greatness that night will finally get the credit it has long deserved.
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On Monday, and in almost fitting fashion with the College Football Playoff title game between Alabama and Clemson later on, the National Football Foundation (NFF) and the College Football Hall of Fame announced its 2019 College Football Hall of Fame Class, and Texas quarterback Vince Young is one of the top featured players.
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The College Football Hall of Fame is not for just any player. It has to be earned, and there is a certain set of criteria that must be matched. The 6-foot-5, 230-pound quarterback from Madison High School in Houston checked off every box long ago.
Young, who played for the Longhorns from 2003-2005 and received First-Team All-American honors, has been out of the game for at least 10 years. His professional career is over, and, for all intents and purposes, has been a good man in the community. Sometimes, it's just better late than never.
For three seasons in Austin, Young was both a special player and someone straight out of a video game. He gave Big 12 defense nightmares, throwing for 6,040 yards with 44 touchdowns and 28 interceptions and adding 3,127 rushing yards and 37 more touchdowns. He broke almost every record imaginable at the University of Texas at the time and was a Heisman Trophy finalist.
And of course, everyone remembers his 467 total yards (267 passing and 200 rushing) in the 2006 Rose Bowl to stun the top-ranked USC Trojans and hoist the national championship trophy under head coach Mack Brown. It was arguably the greatest performance in college football history.
After his college career, Young was taken No. 3 overall in the 2006 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans. He was named to two Pro Bowls during his short career and compiled over 10,000 total yards with 58 total touchdowns for the Titans and Philadelphia Eagles.
The 2019 College Football Hall of Fame Class also includes: Terrell Buckley (Florida State), Rickey Dixon (Oklahoma), London Fletcher (John Carroll), Jacob Green (Texas A&M), Torry Holt (North Carolina State), Raghib Ismail (Notre Dame), Darren McFadden (Arkansas), Jake Plummer (Arizona State), Troy Polamalu (Southern California), Joe Thomas (Wisconsin), Lorenzo White (Michigan State), Patrick Willis (Mississippi),and coaches Dennis Erickson and Joe Taylor.
