Coach Young's Decade at U.M.

By Jordon D. Semien

      Imagine what you could accomplish in ten years on a job. You could stay the course, stick to the original plan and settle for the mundane, or you could set a new standard for diligence and respectability while making everyone around you consistently better.

    For the past 10 years, the University of Montevallo’s Men’s Basketball program has been ran by a man that defines those qualities: Coach Danny Young. In his decade at Montevallo, Coach Young took a fledgling Division II program, and transformed them into a National contender almost over night.

Coach Danny Young

    Coach Young arrived at U.M. to find a program searching for an identity. Being just the sixth man to hold the position in 45 years, Coach Young was hired not just due to his outstanding track record, but because he posses all the qualities a Coach needs to succeed at such a high level.

    The honor of being the sixth head coach in program history was never lost on Coach Young. Coach said that “In the time of people coming and going, with the coaching carousel goes every year, it’s been a great honor to stay on and be at one place so long”.

    Coach’s resume is lengthy one to say the least, with stops across the country, including a stay at Salem International University in Salem, West Virginia, where he served as Head Coach and A.D. before deciding to help rebuild Montevallo’s Athletic Department.

    Athletic Director Jim Herlihy, who has held the position for the last six of Coach’s ten years, said that not only has Coach generally improved the Men’s program, but he has forever changed the culture of the University, not only improving the G.P.A’s and graduations rates of the Men’s team, but showing everyone that you don’t have to sacrifice a improved academic standings for a wining program, or vise versa.

    But no matter the accolades, the titles, or the notoriety, Coach Young will forever attribute his success to the teachings from his former coach, NBA All Start Paul Westphal, and his love for the sport. “I think I’m one of the fortunate people that get to come to a job that they love to do every day. Not everybody gets to do that, I don’t think. But I love basketball, I like being around the guys, I like trying to help them. It’s big for me to get to do something I enjoy everyday…”

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