FLOWERY BRANCH – If former Falcons assistant coach Bryant Young had his way, he would have been a fullback.
Young didn’t start playing football until he was a freshman at Bloom High School in Chicago Heights (Ill.) and if he’d stayed in the backfield, maybe he would have been a Hall of Fame fullback. But he was switched to the defensive line and became an All-American at Notre Dame.
Later, Young turned into one of the NFL’s most ferocious lineman of his era. Young, 50, is set to be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday in Canton, Ohio.
Joining Young in the class of 2022 are defensive lineman Richard Seymour, offensive lineman Tony Boselli, linebacker Sam Mills, defensive back LeRoy Butler, wide receiver Cliff Branch, coach Dick Vermeil and longtime director of officiating Art McNally.
“I think the best decision that was made was that somebody saw it differently than what I thought,” said Young, who coached the Falcons’ defensive line from 2017-19 under former head coach Dan Quinn. “It was like whoa, from your size you belong in the trenches. So, I’m glad that happened early.”
Young, who played at 6-foot-3 and 291 pounds, took to football.
“I was just having fun and living in the moment with the guys that I was competing with,” Young said. “That may have been kind of a defining moment. Just knowing that I loved playing football and that I love to compete. I love doing it with guys around me, my teammates.”
After a stellar college career, Young was selected seventh overall in the 1994 NFL draft. He went on to anchor the 49ers’ defensive line until the 2007 season.
He was a first-team All-Pro selection once and was selected second-team All-Pro three times. He was selected to four Pro Bowls. Young played in 208 regular-season games and 11 playoff games. He had 92.5 sacks and 650 tackles, overall.
Young’s teammate Ken Norton inadvertently shattered his shin with his helmet. There were complications in surgery and he was in the hospital for 17 days. He nearly lost his left leg.
Young miraculously returned for the 1999 season opener and finished with 11 sacks and was named the league’s comeback player of the year by the Associated Press and the Pro Football Writers of America.
Young was later named to the NFL’s All-Decade Team of the 1990s.
“I was extremely grateful to play for such an iconic franchise,” Young said. “It meant so much to me just having a little bit of knowledge of the 49ers before I got there before I was drafted. Just what they stood for.”
The 49ers were a powerhouse when Young was drafted, but would eventually have to rebuild.
“The championships and the culture that was in place, but to have the opportunity to go there and experience it firsthand it was such a such an honor and a privilege to be a part of that franchise,” Young said.
The 49ers won Super Bowl XXIX in a rout of the Chargers after Young’s rookie season. He would team up with Dana Stubblefield to form one of the league’s top tackle combinations.
Quinn was on the 49ers staff from 2001-05 and worked with Young.
The 49ers reached the NFC title game after the 1997 season during Young’s career.
“It was a huge blessing to be able to (play for the 49ers) for the length of my career,” Young said. “I know that most people don’t get the opportunity to finish their career where they started. So, I don’t take that lightly.”
Former teammate Gary Plummer tells the story of how Young, in a game against the Bengals, became enraged and snatched the face mask off an opposing player’s helmet.
“I’ve been known to, in the heat of battle … go and just be very, very angry,” Young said. “But within the right perspective, it could have happened. Yeah, I don’t deny it.”
Bryant, who’s a calm individual, changed personalities when he was on the football field.
“I think that’s part of football and part of the NFL,” Young said. “But I think football is a very, chaotic, very violent and physical sport. It’s controlled chaos. You don’t excel in the game by being this passive and nice individual.”
After football, Young dealt with the passing of his son Colby after a two-year battle with pediatric cancer ended in October of 2017.
“There have been many lessons learned,” Young said. “The most important one is always trust in God. It’s always been God’s timing. Like we don’t know how our life is going be and what the next step maybe. It’s really learning to trust God and the moments where we can’t see what’s at the end of the tunnel.”
Young is putting the final touches on his speech. He’s looking to getting his yellow jacket and walking across the stage to see his bust.
“It’s been a once in a lifetime moment and I’m just trying to embrace all the steps,” Young said. “I’m really trying to enjoy the moment.”
