New Orleans Saints Flashback: Tyrone Young

Tyrone Young was a receiver for the New Orleans Saints for two seasons, 1983 & 1984.

Born in Ocala, Florida, Young went on to play college football for the Florida Gators.

Interestingly, the 6-foot-6, 190-pound Young was a quarterback in his first year at Florida, completing 13-of-36 of his passes for 153 yards in his freshman year of 1979.

Florida moved Young to receiver in 1980, where he went on to catch 58 passes for 88 yards and seven touchdowns over three seasons.

At Florida, Young played receiver with Cris Collinsworth in 1980, while being tutored by offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan, who would later move on to be a Super Bowl-winning coach in the NFL.

After going unselected in the 1983 NFL Draft, Young made the Saints' roster as an undrafted free agent.

The Saints wanted to use Young's height and jumping ability as best they could, so they used him as a guy that would run up to the line of scrimmage, jump, and try to block extra points and field goals by the opposition.

Young only caught seven passes in 1983, but three of them went for touchdowns, as he was used on numerous fade patterns and desperation passes at the end of the first half, or the game, which earned him the nickname "Ty In The Sky".

The Saints expanded Young's role in 1984, when he started eight games at receiver, catching 29 passes fro 597 yards and three touchdowns, before injuries put an end to his short career.

In his two years with the Saints, Young accumulated 32 catches for 682 yards and six touchdowns.

In 2004, Young was diagnosed with multiple Myloma cancer, which is a type of cancer that does not go into remission.

Now 53-years old, Young has been battling cancer for close to a decade, but continues to lead a productive life, while being remembered fondly by many Saints fans of the early 80's.