Brigham Young, 1984
• 1983 Academic All-America® Second Team
Steve Young was inducted into the CoSIDA Academic All-America® Hall of Fame in 2003.
Steve Young started at Brigham Young University for the Cougars football team from 1981–83, after working tirelessly to improve his quarterbacking skills. Young’s senior season as starting quarterback was spectacular. He passed for 3,902 yards and 33 touchdowns and rushed for 544 yards in the regular season and his 71.3% completion percentage set an NCAA single-season record. That season Young broke 13 NCAA records and played in the Hula and Japan Bowls. He was selected consensus All-America by the Football Coaches (Kodak), Football Writers (Mercedes Benz), Walter Camp, ESPN, Football News, Gannett News Service, United Press International, and Associated Press. He was runner-up in the Heisman Trophy balloting, set seven Western Athletic Conference records, was 1983 WAC Player of the Year, and was a two-time All-WAC selection. Young earned a degree in International Relations and the NCAA honored him with their Top Five Award and a postgraduate scholarship. After leaving BYU he played two seasons in the United States Football League with the Los Angeles Express and then moved to the National Football League spending two years with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before signing with the San Francisco 49ers in 1987. With the 49ers Young was voted NFL Most Valuable Player in 1992 and 1994 and was runner-up in 1993. In Super Bowl XXIX (1995) Young led the 49ers to a victory over the San Diego Chargers.
Off the field Young is the founder of the Forever Young Charity Foundation, an honorary chairman of the Children's Miracle Network and a spokesman for Parents of Children with Disabilities. Young earned a law degree from BYU at the J. Reuben Clark Law School in 1994. Young worked for the private equity firm H&G Capital Partners and as an NFL analyst for ESPN's Monday Night Football. On television and the radio Young is a well-known analyst respected for his insight into the inner-workings of the NFL.
The San Francisco 49ers had Young’s No. 8 jersey retired, making him the 11th player in team history to receive this honor.