A native of
Charleston, West Virginia, attended three colleges and participated in the athletic programs of all three. In 1910–11, Young matriculated to Marshall College (now
Marshall University), where he played varsity football,
track and field, and baseball. He attended the
University of Michigan where he played for the junior varsity football team for one year, and then transferred to
Washington & Lee University, where he was a four-sport player, lettering 16 times. During his football career at Washington and Lee, Young led the team in scoring four straight years and served as captain of the team in 1916. At that time, Washington and Lee played such powerhouses as Army, Navy, Georgia Tech, Indiana, North Carolina and Cornell. Young's basketball career equaled his football, playing four years at Washington and Lee, leading the team in scoring three of the four years, and serving as captain in 1915. The
Helms Foundation selected him as an
All-American in 1917. Young's baseball career also covered a four-year period, in which he led the team in runs scored and in stolen bases each of the four years. He was captain of the 1917 team. Young's track record also covered a span of four years where he ran the 100 and 220-yard dashes. He only lost one race during his college career and held many of the school's track records some of which still stand. ==Coaching career==