Michael Young

#8 · WR · Sr. · Cincinnati5′10″ · 190 lb · Saint Rose, LA · Destrehan

Michael Young: WR · Cincinnati · #8.

Similar players

Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.

Jay FairAuburn · 2023 · 88% season match
Chandler SpeightsTexas State · 2020 · 86% season match
Charles MontgomeryMarshall · 2024 · 85% season match
Courtney JacksonSyracuse · 2021 · 83% season match
Ja'Shaun PokeKent State · 2021 · 83% season match

Michael Young

WR · Cincinnati · Sr · #8

Moves the chains on third down. Played for two head coaches at two programs in five seasons: Brian Kelly and Luke Fickell. A game that shows it: 67 receiving yards and 3 receptions against Murray State — Week 2, 2021.

Style of play

Play style

Reliable target who converts on critical downs. Not flashy; consistently productive.

Fans

No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.

Cincinnati in the news

Cincinnati beats Texas Tech for first top-10 win since 2021Yahoo Sports Oct 24
$1M Sorsby lawsuit pendingFront Office Sports Oct 22

Where to follow

Career stats

Swipe the table sideways for more columns.

Season	Team
2021	Cincinnati	28	353	12.6	2	38
2020	Cincinnati	29	332	11.4	3	33
2019	Notre Dame	6	21	3.5	0	8
2018	Notre Dame	7	138	19.7	1	66
2017	Notre Dame	4	18	4.5	1	6
Career		74	862	11.6	7	66

Season	Team
2021	Cincinnati	--	--	--
2020	Cincinnati	1	−6	--
2019	Notre Dame	1	2	48
2018	Notre Dame	1	−1	191
2017	Notre Dame	1	6	18
Career		4	1	257

Game log

Game log · Week-by-week

2021 season · 10 games

Box score · CFBD

Swipe the table sideways for more columns.

Wk	Opp	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG	Note
Wk 1	W 49-14vs Miami (OH)	1	8	8.0	0	8
Wk 2	W 42-7vs Murray State	3	67	22.3	0	38	Season-high 67 yds
Wk 3	W 38-24@ Indiana	4	35	8.8	0	11
Wk 5	W 24-13@ No. 9 Notre Dame	4	36	9.0	0	19
Wk 6	W 52-3vs Temple	3	17	5.7	1	11
Wk 7	W 56-21vs UCF	1	12	12.0	0	12
Wk 8	W 27-20@ Navy	1	13	13.0	0	13
Wk 9	W 31-12@ Tulane	1	9	9.0	0	9
Wk 10	W 28-20vs Tulsa	2	48	24.0	1	31
Wk 11	W 45-28@ South Florida	4	53	13.3	0	18
Total		24	298	12.4	2	38

Signature game

Week 10 · 2021

W 28-20

vs Tulsa

2 rec · 48 yds · 1 TD

With D. Ridder — 274 yds · 2 TD · 1 INT · QBR 82.7 · 43 rush yds (12 car) · 1 TD · M. Fletcher — 41.3 yards per punt · 3 punts · 1 inside the 20

Signature plays

The plays that mattered most

Week 2 · Murray State · 1st and 20 · Q3 · EPA +3.69Desmond Ridder pass complete to Michael Young Jr. for 38 yds to the MurrS 44 for a
Week 6 · Temple · 3rd and 9 · Q3 · EPA +3.06Ridder to Young Jr.: an 11-yard touchdown pass.
Week 10 · Tulsa · 1st and 10 · Q3 · EPA +2.84Desmond Ridder pass complete to Michael Young Jr. for 31 yds for a TD, (Christian Lowery KICK)
Week 8 · Navy · 3rd and 8 · Q2 · EPA +2.25Desmond Ridder pass complete to Michael Young Jr. for 13 yds to the Cincy 40 for a
Week 7 · UCF · 3rd and 9 · Q1 · EPA +2.24Desmond Ridder pass complete to Michael Young Jr. for 12 yds to the UCF 29 for a
Week 3 · Indiana · 2nd and 9 · Q4 · EPA +1.98Desmond Ridder pass complete to Michael Young Jr. for 11 yds to the Cincy 47 for a

4 more plays

Week 1 · Alabama · 2nd and 4 · Q4 · EPA +1.86Desmond Ridder pass complete to Michael Young Jr. for 28 yds to the Alab 29 for a
Week 11 · South Florida · 2nd and 7 · Q3 · EPA +1.55Desmond Ridder pass complete to Michael Young Jr. for 9 yds to the Cincy 46 for a
Week 6 · Temple · 2nd and 1 · Q3 · EPA −1.44Desmond Ridder pass complete to Michael Young Jr. for no gain to the Cincy 43
Week 5 · Notre Dame · 2nd and 8 · Q3 · EPA +1.34Desmond Ridder pass complete to Michael Young Jr. for 19 yds to the NDame 24 for a

Teams and coaches

2017Notre Dame10-3HC: Brian Kelly · Run-heavy

2018Notre Dame12-1HC: Brian Kelly · Run-leaning

2019Notre Dame11-2HC: Brian Kelly · Balanced

2020Cincinnati9-1HC: Luke Fickell · Run-leaning

2021Cincinnati13-1HC: Luke Fickell · Run-leaning

Our ratings

CFB Zeitgeist Score 38 (#306 of 468). Show the ratings

Where this profile ranks vs the WR cohort

Box-score percentiles · 2021 season

38Below cohort / limited sample #306 of 468 · 2021?

6 metrics · season cumulative

2021 score: the 2026 sample is not big enough yet. The rows below are 2026 so far. Concern: long catch (26th percentile).

Box-score rates (6)

Receptions#283 / 557 · 49th pct

Rec yards#305 / 557 · 45th pct

353

Rec TDs#278 / 557 · 42nd pct

Yards / catch#333 / 557 · 40th pct

12.6

Fumbles lost#89 / 223 · 36th pct

Long catch#405 / 557 · 26th pct

Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps in 2021, based on box-score rates.

Splits

Home and road splits, scheme and staff

Splits · Per-game

2021 season · 10 games

Home/Road · Season halves

Home vs Road

	REC/g	YDS/g	YPR	TD/g
Home5g	2.0	30.4	14.4	0.4
Road5g	2.8	29.2	10.6	0.0

First half vs Second half

	REC/g	YDS/g	YPR	TD/g
Weeks 1-76g	2.7	29.2	11.0	0.2
Weeks 8+4g	2.0	30.8	14.8	0.2

Supporting cast · Scheme

Staff and system around the player

2021 season

Head Coach

Luke Fickell

Pass share

46.9%

399 pass / 451 run

Plays / game

65.4

13 games

Team sack rate

5.4%

427 dropbacks · PBP

Scheme: Run-leaning.

Awards

Player standing · 2021

28 catches in 10 games

Fewer catches a game than most FBS receivers who play every week.

Recognition

Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex

Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score

38 · #306 of 468 WRs · 2021

Three-star recruit. Now #306 at the position.

Michael Young

Similar players

Style of play

Fans

Cincinnati in the news

Where to follow

Career stats

Game log

Signature game

Signature plays

Teams and coaches

Our ratings

Splits

Awards

28 catches in 10 games

Five seasons, two schools

2017 4 games