While Bill Young has long been connected with Naperville Central wrestling, his origin story actually began at Thornton Township High School. After a younger Bill was involved in a “little scuffle” at school, Jack Robinson, the Thornton’s Head Wrestling Coach and Bill’s eventual mentor, gave Bill an option: join the wrestling team or have a call home to his parents. Bill wisely chose the former, unknowingly altering the course of his life. While at Thornton, Bill Young was transformed as an athlete and eventually advanced to the quarterfinal round of the state wrestling tournament in 1953. During his time wrestling for Coach Robinson, Bill learned that the wrestling room was a classroom that taught life lessons, a philosophy he reinforced when he took over the program at Naperville Central High School. Following his own high school wrestling career, Young continued his education at Northern Illinois University. In the classroom, he earned a degree in education, while on the wrestling mat he helped NIU earn an Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference team championship before finishing 3rd and 4th at the 1958 and 1959 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) National Championships. In 1959, Bill Young lost in the Olympic Trials to Doug Blubaugh, who would go on to win the gold medal in the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. After graduating from Northern, Young began his coaching career as an assistant wrestling coach at NIU before starting his teaching and coaching career at Naperville Central in 1960. Just as he learned from his days at Thornton Township with Coach Robinson, Young motivated his young athletes to gain confidence by meeting goals they set for themselves. Bill would ask his wrestlers, “What’s the other guy doing?” urging them to reflect on whether or not they were putting in more work than their opponents. After a loss, Young would ask his wrestlers, “What did you learn?” If their answer was “nothing,” he was quick to respond, “Then we just wasted our time.” Under his watchful eye and exacting standard, Naperville Central produced 25 state qualifiers, 10 state place winners, and one state champion. Bill Young and Naperville Central Wrestling are synonymous, so much so that the Redhawk Wrestling facility bears his name. Coach Young ran the Central Wrestling program from 1962 to 1985 and remained as an assistant from 1986-1999. During his tenure as head coach, Central won over 200 dual meets, 3 Regional Championships, and a Sectional Championship, finished as sectional runner-up twice, and earned a 7th place finish in 1976 and 10th in 1975 at the IHSA State Tournament. In 1990, Coach Young was inducted into the Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association Hall of Fame. The IWCOA also bestowed upon him their Lifetime Achievement Award for the contributions that he made to Illinois wrestling both as an athlete and a coach.Bill Young was more than just a teacher and coach to the young people of Naperville Central; he was also a proud member of the Naperville community. Young, along with former Naperville Mayor George Pradel, created the Naperville Park Police in 1972. Chief Young had the perfect summer job as he transitioned into his role as Dean of Students at NCHS. He was honored for his dedication to the Naperville Park District when they named the West Street Athletic Fields in Young’s honor, a facility used today for Naperville Central practices. Bill was married to his wife Martha for 40 years. Together they raised their four children, Laura, Bob, Dan, and Barry. Bill’s commitment to his family, our school, and the town of Naperville are evident even after his passing in 2014. Bill’s lasting legacy can be traced back to his decision to join his high school wrestling team. Naperville Central – and all who knew and loved Bill – will be forever grateful and forever shaped by that decision.