George Young (American football player)

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George Donald Young (May 10, 1924 – September 21, 1969) was an American football defensive end who played eight seasons with the Cleveland Browns in the AAFC and NFL (1946–1953). He later became an umpire in the American Football League, officiating from 1960 through 1969, including the league’s first championship in 1960 and Super Bowl I after the 1966 season.

Early life
Young grew up in Forty Fort, a poor suburb of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. His mother died when he was 10. He stood out in sports at Forty Fort High School, becoming a football end and the state heavyweight wrestling champion as a senior. He attended the University of Georgia, where he played for the Bulldogs and helped the team win the Rose Bowl after the 1942 season.

World War II and service football
World War II interrupted his college career. He spent three years in the U.S. Navy, playing service football under coach Paul Brown in 1944 at a naval facility near Chicago, and in 1945 at Fleet City in California, where the service team won the national championship. Doctors once warned about a large calcium growth on his right thigh bone, but he chose not to operate, and it did not prevent him from playing.

Professional football with the Browns
After the war, Paul Brown invited him to try out for the Cleveland Browns. He joined the team in 1946, becoming a key defensive end as the Browns won five league championships (four in the AAFC from 1946–1949 and the 1950 NFL championship). He earned a degree from Baldwin–Wallace College in 1949 while playing.

Later career and death
Young retired from playing after the 1953 season and worked for the Public Service Company of Northern Illinois in its personnel department. He returned to football in 1960 as an official in the AFL, keeping his day job, and worked as an umpire through 1969. He officiated the AFL’s first championship in 1960 and was the umpire for Super Bowl I following the 1966 season. He died of a brain tumor in 1969 at age 45 in Chicago, survived by his wife Norma and two daughters, Sally and Diane.