Kaye Don Young (2005) - Hall of Fame

Kaye Don Young

Induction:
2005
Class:
1959

Kaye Don Young has been a staple in the state of Iowa's wrestling success for 50 years.

A graduate of Waterloo East High, he placed third at the state meet in 1953 before representing UNI (then Iowa State Teachers College) in the 1954 AAU tournament where he won the championship.

His career at UNI was interrupted when he was drafted into the United States Navy in 1956. He went on to wrestle for the Naval Training Station in San Diego for two years. In 1958, he returned to UNI, finishing his degree in physical education in 1959. He received his M.A. from UNI in 1969.

Young began his coaching career early at Maquoketa (Iowa) High School. He was assistant football coach and head wrestling coach as well as starting the golf program for both men and women. His golf teams advanced to the state tournament seven out of the 11 seasons he coached, crowning one state champion. He posted an overall record of 77 wins and 14 losses. His teams won the conference championship six times and the sectional championship six times.

In 1966, Young took a job at Wartburg College as the interim wrestling coach and an assistant football coach. Along with teaching duties, he was the Assistant Dean of Students and a counselor.

Young went to North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC) in 1968, hired to initiate a wrestling program. In their inaugural year, the Trojans placed 14th at the National Junior College Tournament. In the second year of their program, they finished 10th. The next three years saw the Trojans place second in back-to-back-to-back years before taking home the big trophy in 1973 in dominating fashion, scoring almost double the points of the second-place team. Young coached a wrestler by the name of Joe Hatchett who went on to become a two-time national champion and Joe Corso, who represented the United States in the 1976 Olympics.

The wrestling program at NIACC was shut down in 1977 due to a financial crunch. In the nine years that the program operated, Young's teams placed in the top 25 nationally eight times. The Trojans brought home trophies six of those seasons by placing in the top six. His overall record was 115-16-2. In 1973, he was named National Junior College Coach of the Year. In, 1981, he was inducted into the National Junior College Hall of Fame, and in 1985 into the Waterloo East High School's Hall of Fame.