Clemson Chad Carson and Kyle Young Named First Team Academic All-Americans

Dec. 5, 2000

Clemson, SC-Clemson starting middle linebacker Chad Carson and starting center Kyle Young were both named 2000 Verizon Academic All-Americans by the College Sports Information Directors of America.

Clemson was the only NCAA Division I School to have two first-team All-American selections this year. This is the second year in Clemson football history that the program has had two Academic All-America selections in the same season. The only other time was in 1999 when the same two players were chosen.

Carson of Newnan, GA has a 3.94 career GPA in biological sciences. He has made just one “B” in his academic career. Young, a native of Clemson, SC has a 3.97 career GPA in secondary education. Young is a senior academically, but a junior on the field.

“Chad Carson and Kyle Young have worked hard and being presented with this honor recognizes this hard work”, said Clemson Head Coach Tommy Bowden. “Both manage their academics and football very well. They set an inspiring example for our players on the field and in the classroom.”

Now a two-time first team All-America selection, Young was a major contributor to the success of the Clemson offense. His leadership on the field played a major part in Clemson’s average of 446.5 yards per game, highest in school history. He had 106 knockdown blocks at center, most ever by a Clemson center. Young was named first-team All-ACC and second team All-American by Sporting News and Football News.

Young is just the second two-time first-team Academic All-America selection in Clemson history. He joins Steve Fuller (1977-78) with that distinction. He was also an All-American on the field. He is just the third Clemson football player in history to be named Academic All-American and on-field All-American in the same year, join Fuller (1978) and Lou Cordileone (1959).

Carson a second-team Academic American in 1999, finished the season with 146 tackles, averaging 13.3 per game. That figure ranked first on the Clemson team and second in the ACC. He had nine tackles for loss and three sacks during the 2000 seasons. He had nine games of 10 or more tackles, with a season high of 22 versus Georgia Tech. He went over the 300 tackle mark in the South Carolina game. He was named ACC Defensive Lineman of the week twice this year.