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Florida Atlantic University Athletics
Interim Athletic Director to Receive Honor
Interim Athletic Director to Receive Honor
Feb. 24, 2003
Boca Raton, FL -
Dr. Richard Young, Florida Atlantic University's Interim Athletic Director, has been recommended and has accepted to receive the United States Sports Academy's Distinguished Service Award.
"Dick" Young is the epitome of the man who raises himself up the ladder of success through the many stages of his profession and completes his career with a flourish. Few professionals in the athletic community have the diverse experience of playing for the legendary Woody Hayes of Ohio State, engineering institutions through crisis periods, and mobilizing his focused student-athlete philosophy for the good of college sports throughout the nation. For his long-time commitment to intercollegiate sports and the cherished ideals from which he administers, Dick Young will receive the United States Sports academy's Distinguished Service Award for 2003.
Perhaps charting Young's distinguished sport career is a throwback to a former day when an athletic director learned his trade by mastering every aspect of college sport. When it comes to the integrity of the student athlete concept, Dick Young would be considered a purist by most standards. He is not a fan of the entertainment thrust of college athletics, does not see the need for a College Bowl series, and is insistent that teams abide by the rules and regulations that govern the NCAA.
Realizing he learned more from Woody Hayes than how to place x's and o's, early in Young's career he earned a reputation as a person with tremendous insight as to what it takes to win. He is responsible for discovering some of the most brilliant talent in NCAA football history. If you asked him why he hired Jimmy Johnson (the tremendously successful former football coach at the University of Miami) to revive the Oklahoma State program, his answer would display Young's acute perception. Of Johnson, years later Young disclaimed, "he came with an abundance of energy, excitement and direction." It is easy to notice these qualities in a championship coach, but Young foresaw them before Johnson's emergence to national championship status. Young also discovered Dennis Erickson, who eventually became another Miami championship coach. Woody taught me how to look for DOER'S. A DOER Young said: "is dedicated, organized, enthusiastic and resilient. If you have those four characteristics, you have a chance to be successful."
The President of Lynn University, the next to last in a series of institutions which Dick Young transformed into its full potential, said of his Athletic Director "he has been the crucial element in developing Lynn University athletics for nearly a decade." Choosing the correct educational goals for an institution is an important talent. Dick Young has always worked hard and smart. He is known as one who will completely study a situation, and then form a battle plan that matches the institution's future mission. At Lynn in nine years he achieved his major goals of raising a quality NAIA program to a Division II power, secured a conference affiliation and established a graduate school in sports administration. The Distinguished Service Award from the United States Sports Academy is awarded to the soon to be retired Athletic Director Dr. Richard Young for his unfathomable ability to uphold the ideals of the University student athlete and assist individuals of every caliber and ability to succeed to their maximum excellence.
The award will be bestowed July 25, 2003.
Young has served as the athletic director for (listed alphabetically): Bowling Green State University, Florida Atlantic University, Florida International University, Lynn University, Oklahoma State University, Washington State University.