William J. Young
American football, basketball, and baseball coach, college athletics administrator
About William J. Young
Lived 1881 – 1957 (aged 76). William J. Young was an American basketball coach.
William James Young (September 9, 1881 – December 8, 1957) was an American college sports coach, athletics administrator, professor, physician, and health officer. He served as athletic director at the College of William & Mary from 1911 to 1913, Grove City College from 1913 to 1915, the University of Maine from 1916 to 1918, and Texas A&M University from 1919 to 1920. Young was the head football coach at William & Mary from 1911 to 1912 and Grove City in 1914, compiling a career college football coaching record of 1–20–3.
Early life, playing career, and education Young was born on September 9, 1881, in Boston, to James and Sarah Prouty Young. He played football in 1899 and 1900 at Mechanic Arts High School—now known as John D. O'Bryant School of Mathematics & Science–in Boston and ran track in 1900 and 1901 before graduating in 1901. He then attend the International Young Men's Christian Association Training School—now known as Springfield College—in Springfield, Massachusetts. Young played for the Springfield Training School football team for three seasons, from 1904 to 1906 at the fullback, halfback, quarterback, and end positions. He also played on the school's baseball team as a third baseman in the spring of 1907 and graduated from the school that year.
Young moved on the University of Pennsylvania to pursue of medical degree. There he played for three years on the Penn Quakers football as a halfback and three years on the Penn Quakers men's ice hockey at cover point. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine—now known as the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania—with a Doctor of Medicine degree in 1911. In 1913, he was appointed the director of the physical department at Grove City College in Grove City, Pennsylvania and took charge of the school's basketball team that fall. In July 1916, Young was elected professor of physical education and director of athletics at the University of Maine, succeeding Edgar Wingard.
In the 1920s, Young was the health officer for the city of Waterville, Maine and later on staff at the Veterans' Hospital at Togus, Maine. He was the district health officer for Androscoggin, Franklin, and Somerset counties in Maine before his retirement in 1951.
Death Young died on December 8, 1957, at Central Maine General Hospital in Lewiston, Maine, following a two-day-long illness.
Head coaching record Football
Basketball
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Important facts
People in William J. Young's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped William J. Young's
Frequently asked questions
Who was William J. Young?
American football, basketball, and baseball coach, college athletics administrator (1881–1957)
When was William J. Young born?
William J. Young was born on 9 September 1881 in Dorchester.
When did William J. Young die?
William J. Young died on 5 December 1957 in Massachusetts.
What was William J. Young's occupation?
William J. Young was a basketball coach.
What nationality was William J. Young?
William J. Young was American.
Sources & further reading
· DBpedia: William J. Young (coach)
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). William J. Young. https://biography.guide/william-j-young/
MLA: "William J. Young." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/william-j-young/.
Chicago: "William J. Young." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/william-j-young/.
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