Being patient pays off for former MG star Toren Young

Junior expects to be Iowa's feature back

July 22, 2019 10:36 PM

Kevin Lewis,

Posted: July 22, 2019 10:36 PM

Updated: August 31, 2021 12:29 PM

by Kevin Lewis

Young expects to be Iowa's feature back this season.
The former Monona Grove star credits his high school coaches with acquiring a solid work ethic.
Young ran for five touchdowns last season.

Iowa City — Former Monona Grove running back Toren Young was the best running back in the state when he racked up 2,779 yards, 28 touchdowns, and first-team all-state honors as a senior in 2015. He rushed for more than 5,000 yards and 54 touchdowns in three years as a starter.

But Young said things were different when he showed up at Iowa in the fall of 2016. He went from the featured back to a freshman who had to learn the ropes before producing at the college level.

“That’s tough, when you go from high school and being a leader, and then you get to college and you’re back at the bottom of the totem pole. So it’s definitely tough,” Young said at Big Ten media day. “I had some great guys in front of me that I was able to learn from. Just to see their experiences- for them to share what they learned from guys before them was very beneficial.”

Young rushed for 193 yards and a pair of touchdowns as a redshirt freshman in 2017. He jumped to 637 yards and five scores last season.