RB Kedren Young Embracing Notre Dame & New Routine
Running back Kedren Young arrived on campus in mid-January and quickly realized he wasn't in Texas.
The temperatures on move-in weekend were under zero and South Bend had just received the highest snowfall of the year.
“That was crazy,” laughed Young. “I'm from Texas. We just get the sun all the time, so this was different. It hit me in my face when I got here. I heard that this is the worst it’s been in like a minute. I'm used to it now. You’ve got to get used to it, adapt and get used to everything.”
Wise advice.
Young will now look to embrace college-level courses off the field while also adapting to an intense strength and conditioning program led by Loren Landow as he prepares for his first spring.
The 6-foot, 217-pounder currently takes Sociology, Food, Writing and Children’s Literature classes, but inside The Gug, Young is looking to find a groove.
“Just getting used to the routine and everything, whether it’s the weight room, whether it’s footwork, learning drills,” Young said of his offseason goals. “Trying to get better and learn everything and take it day by day. That's my main thing — take it day by day.”
One adjustment has been Notre Dame’s early morning workouts. Young had been used to afternoon workouts at Lufkin High School and now, he’s working out before the sun comes up.
“The hardest thing is waking up in the morning,” explained Young. “I'm a morning person, so I kind of stuck to that. I think the routine — waking up, stretching, warming up and then whether it's conditioning, whether it's footwork, change of direction, and then go to the weight room and pump some iron.”
Landow has stressed technique over anything else in the weight room. Young appreciates the attention to detail even if he hasn’t been perfect.
“We were doing power cleans and I wasn't getting my hips up high enough,” stated Young. “So, I've been learning that. I've been trying to get better at that. Not just from Coach Landow, but also the staff. They're doing a good job with me, trying to get us better at technique.”
Young has a goal to be 220 pounds when he returns to Texas for this season-opener against Texas A&M, but the focus isn’t on the Aggies.
In fact, Young has been watching some of Audric Estime’s tape and has heard the comparisons from those outside the program. Young doesn’t necessarily feel they are the same back, but he’s also soaking up anything he can to get on the field.
“I think Audric has his own game,” Young explained. “Audric was playing at like 232. He's a bigger guy, but he can still move. I like his game. I like to watch his highlights, too. I think we have our similarities but we have a different game.”
And what part of Estime’s game has impressed Young? The way he moves.
“When somebody talks about the bigger back, [usually] they're like, ‘Well, we can't move,’” said Young. “He had a lot of moves, and combining with his power, you really just learn how he moves in the hole and his open speed. There’s a lot you can learn from an older back.”
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