WR Michael Young Jr. Goes In-Depth on Graduate Transfer to Cincinnati
It wasn't an easy decision for receiver Michael Young Jr. to enter the Transfer Portal in October, but he knew he had to do what was best for him.
The 5-foot-10, 190-pounder found himself in the middle of a recruiting process, but this time he took it slow before giving his commitment to Cincinnati.
Young admitted his recruitment out of high schools was overwhelming at times and taking his time became a priority over the last few months.
"It's been pretty tough," Young stated. "I'm way more mature and I've been able to handle it better. I know how to say no and go in different directions as opposed to high school. I didn't want to offend anyone or burn bridges in high school, so I was saying yes when I had no interest at all. I'm maneuvering it better."
The Louisiana native ended his Notre Dame career with 17 receptions for 177 yards and two touchdowns, but flashed his big-play ability in practice and a few games in 2018.
Those flashes led to over 30 programs expressing interest in the graduate transfer.
"I can honestly say there have been over 30 schools reach out since I've entered the portal from every conference," stated Young. "I was a little taken back from it. I know I made some plays at Notre Dame and got some recognition, but I never thought this many schools would contact me.
"I didn't think it would be this big at all. I'm grateful for it because it could have gone the other way and no one wanted me. For about three months, it was a new school or a new contacting me."
For high school recruits, an offer is like playing with dominos. Notre Dame can offer a prospect and then you'll see the recruit get five offers from other programs the next day.
It was similar for Young during the last few months, but none of it was public, so it caught him off guard.
"In high school, you get an offer and run to Twitter to tweet it," explained Young. "It blows up and goes viral. Coaches from other schools see it and then they want to check you out.
"It was different this time. It's funny because it was almost coincidental in a way. I talked to Oklahoma State and the next thing you know, a series of other schools would come out of nowhere right after. It's was like how in the hell do they know? Are they in a group chat together or something? It was weird.
"It happened with Oklahoma State, Vanderbilt and Pitt. Just from those schools talking to me, other schools would come around like Virginia Tech."
The decision to take his talents to Cincinnati to play for Luke Fickell was a lengthy one and one Young thought out.
It's common for recruits to hear about choosing a school over a coaching staff, but Young is in a different situation and the coaching staff mattered a little bit more than the first time around.
"I was able to get familiar with the coaching staffs and develop relationships. Those mean a lot, especially when you get there."
The other part of his decision was looking in-depth at the offense and how he would be used. Young is experienced in college offenses and it allowed him to see which programs he'd fit into.
Young's research also centered around stats. He was able to breakdown film and charts to see how often teams threw to the slot, how many receptions the slot had and where they stacked up against his other options.
"I'm glad I was able to be in college and I'm able to understand offensive schemes," Young explained. "I can see where I fit into the offense and what I'd be allowed to do.
"Coming out of high school, it's hard to really grasp an offense and where you fit because you don't really get that knowledge of how things work. I can look at any offense and see what they're doing and why they're doing it. I'm not getting BS'd when coaches tell me what they do with their slot."
The final piece to the puzzle was his relationships with the current members of the Bearcats.
"I wanted to develop relationships with guys on the team," said Young. "If you go to a school and you can't gel with the guys already there - it's tough. You always want a culture that's accepting and willing to work with you, but also grow with you."
Young will graduate Notre Dame in May and he'll be the first to tell you the decision to play at Cincinnati was more about football. However, that didn't mean he didn't look hard at Northwestern and Vanderbilt.
"It's definitely more of a football decision," Young said. "I have two years left. I'm a nerd. That's why I came to Notre Dame. I love school and I've always been an academic guy. I tried to weigh options when it came to offering the best of both worlds.
"It's more of a football decision now that I'll have my Notre Dame degree. I'm going to get my Master's because I have two years and education is limitless. Football is very limited."
Transferring from Notre Dame weighed heavily on Young as he has strong relationships with his former teammates. Still, he's also incredibly proud of himself for finishing his degree in just three years.
"I will obtain my degree - in three years, by the way, which is hard to do at Notre Dame," laughed Young. "My grades aren't bad. It's not like I'm doing it in three years and doing the minimum. It's all A's. I'm ecstatic. I always knew I could do it, but it was tough balancing football and school."
As for Cincinnati coming to South Bend in 2021, Young is excited.
"It'll be lit," said Young. "That's going to be a fun game. I'll be looking forward to that one."
