The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Vince Young announces decision to turn pro
01.08.2006 | Football
AUSTIN, Texas -- Texas QB Vince Young announced Sunday he will forego his senior season at The University of Texas and make himself eligible for the 2006 NFL Draft.
This season, Young led the Longhorns to their fourth National Championship in school history and the first since 1970. He also leaves Texas as the winningest quarterback in school history, compiling a 30-2 record as a starter. His .938 winning percentage is the sixth-best in NCAA history.
Following his junior season, Young won the Maxwell Award as the nation's top player, the Davey O'Brien Award as the nation's top quarterback, and was voted runner-up to the Heisman Trophy. He was named the Cingular/ABC Sports Player of the Year and was a consensus first-team All-American. Young also earned back-to-back Rose Bowl MVP Awards in wins over Michigan in 2005 and USC in 2006.
As a junior, Young became the first player in NCAA history to rush for 1,000 yards or more and pass for 2,500 yards or more in the same season. He finished with 1,050 yards and 12 TDs on the ground, while completing 65.2 percent of his passes for 3,036 yards (No. 3 on UT's single-season list) and 26 TDs (T-No. 1 on UT's single season list). He also set the school single-season total offense record with 4,086 yards. His 163.95 passer rating was the third best in the nation.
For his career, Young became just the third quarterback in NCAA history to rush for 3,000 yards or more and pass for 6,000 yards or more, joining Antwaan Randle El of Indiana and Joshua Cribbs of Kent State. He completed 61.8 percent of his passes for 6,040 yards (No. 5 on UT's career list) and 44 TDs (No. 4 on UT's career list). He also rushed for 3,127 yards and 37 TDs, while averaging 6.8 yards per carry. Both his rushing yards and TDs are UT quarterback records, and stand fifth and fourth, respectively, among all rushers. He is also the Texas career leader in total offense with 9,167 yards and TDs responsible for with 81.
Press Conference Transcript
Opening comments: First of all, I just want to thank God for this opportunity to be in the position that I am today. It was really hard, but like my mom, and grandmothers and uncles always say, 'Hard work pays off.' So basically, hard work has paid off a whole lot.
To Coach Brown, I would just like to say thank you for all of the things you've done for me. Not only on the field, but off the field, just making me become a better man and understanding different situations and making big choices in my life and helping me be the guy I am today. Coming from that Hiram Clarke area, it's a really tough neighborhood, and for you to come in there and get me out of there, I'm very thankful for you doing that.
To Coach Davis, I know we didn't see each other at first, but now we're best of friends and I appreciate you sitting me down and helping me understand the game. It helped the game be more fun than it already was. It became more fun knowing what you're doing out there. Coach Davis, I love you for that, and your wife, as well.
To my boy Cleve (Bryant), momma Bryant, for staying on me, making sure I was on my books, making sure I was in class and also making sure I was a leader for the next man. To my strength staff, Mad Dog (Jeff Madden), Bruce (Johnson) and Shep (Ken Sheppard) for staying on me and making me get stronger and stronger and get prepared for this season, because it was a hard and long one. I appreciate that a whole lot.
To my teammates, we've been through a whole lot. It's been a really fun ride. It's been really beautiful, and I'll cherish my memories for the rest of my life. I want you to that you've always got a spot, if you need anything, just give me a call. I love ya'll dearly. Working together as a team to get to the point that we are today -- winning the National Championship and the Big 12 -- I love you guys dearly.
To The University of Texas, the city of Austin, hook 'em Horns, and I'll forever be a Longhorn. I love ya'll dearly. You supported me a whole lot, and what more could you ask for being the type of athlete that I am, being a caring, humble guy, just to be accepted by all of the people and especially the kids, that brings a lot of emotion to me. It makes me work harder, so I love ya'll, and I'll always bleed orange for the rest of my life.
Also, to my mom, I love you. You are my Superwoman. I'm not going to say Superman, you are my Superwoman, but you can be Superman, too, because you raised me, as well. Grandma, she's back at home, I love you. My sisters, my girlfriend Candice and her family, you keep me out of a lot of trouble, so I want to say thank you to you, as well. Thank you all for staying on me, for whooping me, for making me see a better way. It was a struggle for both of us, but we found another way by going through God, our Pastor, my church back at home, so I'd like to say thank you mom for believing in me and staying on me.
To the topic -- for all of the hard work I've put in, with my coaches, my teammates and everyone who came in contact with me to make me better as an athlete, I just want to say thank you, and I've decided to enter the draft this year and go to the NFL. I know that everybody is behind me, and I thank ya'll for that, and I love ya'll for that. I will not let you down. I will be a hard worker and do what it takes to not only be a role model, but make it to the Hall of Fame, and that's the biggest it can be.
On the biggest factor in his decision: The biggest thing was basically sitting down with my mom and my uncles and my pastor. My mom always says that you can't move forward without that prayer. That's what we did this morning, we got in front of my pastor that I truly, truly respect, that brought me up and raised me and my momma in the church at home. He taught us a whole lot, so I did not feel good making this decision without his blessing.
On the influence of his performance in the Rose Bowl: It was basically the performance for one thing, but sitting down with my mom and just making that decision. I also want to say that I will get my degree. I will finish that, not only for me, but for my mom, as well.
On what he has learned NFL personnel are thinking: We just know that a lot of teams were saying some good things about us as we were sitting down and as my uncle and those guys did their work to see how they felt about me. After that, it was just about making the decision and sitting down, and basically my mom said it was my decision, and that was my decision. I felt like I was ready to go. I learned a lot of things in college, and I was ready to move on to the next level.
On how he has changed in the time since committing to Texas: I've changed a whole lot. I was a hard head. Like Cleve said all the time, 'Be patient.' He preached that to me all the time. I was patient, and I started understanding. As I started understanding being patient, I got more and more mature. That's just becoming a man, and it helped me out a whole lot without my parents being around and without uncles being around, there was another father figure here for me. He taught me a whole lot of being patient.
On when he started to realize he should go to the NFL: It just started. The whole season, I was planning on coming back with my teammates, but it's a one-time thing, so I'm going to take a jump at it while I can.
On the influence of winning the National Championship: It still would have been a decision on my part, depending on how I would have felt if we lost, but we didn't. As a team, we won.
On not waiting until the deadline to announce: I felt really good about the decision, and I wanted to get it out of the way. I was just sitting down with my family and seeing the different ways I could have gone, but I wanted to get it over with so I could start on my process of different things I'm trying to do to get myself ready for the next level.
On Steve McNair's advice: Basically what Steve said was to go with your heart and make your own decision. In the long run, you have to deal with it. I respect that a whole lot, because he's been there, and he's made a lot of decisions on his own. He's doing a great job, as well, but the biggest thing I got out of his whole message was that a lot of people are going to say a lot of things, but how you feel is what you should go with, and that's what I did.
On the possibility of being drafted by the Tennessee Titans: It would be a great deal to go play with Steve and sit there and learn the game with him coaching me and with the team. Whatever team picks me, I'm going to go in there working and being the same guy that I am today -- a leader, a hard worker and someone who loves the game of football. Whatever team picks me, they're going to see a whole different side of a quarterback when I get there.
On the pressure on the Houston Texans to select him: I don't feed into all of that. Like I've said with stats, people ask me what kind of stats I've made, and it doesn't really matter to me. All that really matters to me is to better the situation for my family, to better myself and get Ws. That's the biggest key to me.
On his conversation with Mack Brown: Just sitting down with coach Brown, he's behind me 100 percent. I respect him a whole lot to say that. Any other coach would probably try to say different things to get me to stay, but coach Brown wasn't selfish at all. He basically said to go with your heart and they'd be behind it 100 percent. That's what he said, and just like I said a while ago, he said to make sure and come back to get your degree. That's what matters to us too.
On what it means that his last two touches in college were the game-winning touchdown and two-point conversion: I just cherish those moments knowing that me and the guys that are my teammates put a lot of hard work in. To see how happy they were brought a lot of emotion to me. As a leader and as a quarterback, that's what a lot of quarterbacks strive for. Not only just winning, but the memories and making sure your teammates excel. Just to see Limas Sweed, how much he bettered himself, Billy Pittman, a lot of guys on this team shined a whole lot this year that didn't get credit for it. Me, I'm really proud of all of those guys that excelled this year.
On dreaming of winning the National Championship and going to the NFL in the top three: Just sitting down with Selvin Young and Albert Hardy, that's something we had planned. We wanted to light up the tower with a number one on it. I know Selvin is somewhere listening to this, I love you man, and we did it. It was basically the hard work we put in with some of the goals and some of the visions we had for ourselves. We went into stride, especially the class of '02. When we came in, we said we wanted to go win a National Championship, and we did.
On his game translating to the NFL: You never know what's going to happen. All you have to do is when you step on the scene, just go out there and work. Just like when I got here, a lot of people have their opinions, but most guys, they just want you to go out there and play the game like you've been doing, and don't try to change a lot of things. But it's going to be good to sit down and learn the game of football some more. Hats off to coach Davis for teaching the things he taught me in college and also getting me prepared for the next level. Now I can take the things that he taught me, go to the next level, use that, and learn some more.
On his satisfaction in doing what he's done after some saying he should change positions: I'm happy. Like I said before when I started the season off, 'I'm a quarterback for life.' You either deal with it or move around it. A lot of people were saying what they were saying, but if you knew what was really going on during that season when I was supposed to move to receiver, it was that a lot of guys were young, and we were all working at the same time trying to get better ourselves. Those guys did what it took to work this season, and look at them now -- Limas Sweed, Billy Pittman, myself, David Thomas -- everybody interacted to understand the game. It wasn't just Vince Young's throwing motion, it was all of us learning the mental part of the game, and that's what we did.
On playing in Houston: It would be wonderful to play at home. Being a Houstonian, you have great fans that are very supportive, not only just for the Houston Texans, but the Rockets, the Astros, the Comets. There are a lot of different things going on in Houston. It's only going to get bigger and bigger. Playing at home and knowing I'm a Houstonian and knowing that everybody is behind me 100 percent would be great.
On the future at quarterback at Texas and Colt McCoy: I see a smart quarterback, and a lot of hard work, a lot of hard work. I've seen a great arm, as well. He's already gained the respect of the guys, and like I told him all year, that's the biggest key. You have to gain the respect of the guys and get them to believe in you. You don't have to make every play all the time, just be their leader and their quarterback, so that if a situation comes and they look to their quarterback, you have to get those guys up. And, you have to take it upon yourself to do different things to learn the offense. He's been answering a lot of questions in meetings that when I was a freshman, I couldn't even answer. I'm just proud of him as a freshman and I look forward to seeing him play.
