Late in his second game back from a concussion that cost him three full games and part of a fourth, Kyle Young suffered another blow to the head.
The fifth-year Buckeye forward left the game in the second half of Ohio State's second-round loss to Villanova on Sunday, which was particularly concerning given Young's history with concussions. The Buckeye captained suffered two in the course of a month at the end of the 2020-21 season, forcing him to miss the final two games of the Buckeyes' postseason run, and Young suffered another during a game on March 1 that sidelined him for the final three Ohio State games prior to Selection Sunday.
But after leaving his final game as a Buckeye with what appeared to be a similar ailment, Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann said Young's latest injury is not as severe as the previous ones.
“Obviously we needed Kyle to close the game in order to push over the top. Most importantly, Kyle’s health is fine,” Holtmann told 97.1 The Fan on Monday. “It was obviously the medical staff’s call to keep him out. They did some evaluating back in the tunnel. They had him run and do sprints in the back and get a feel based on how he was feeling. If there was any concern whatsoever, they were not gonna put him in.”
Holtmann said it was actually Young's cheek that took the brunt of the blow, a collision with Villanova guard Collin Gillespie's shoulder. Holtmann said the concussion Young suffered during the 2021 Big Ten Tournament against Purdue was a different story entirely.
“It was not a (Purdue forward) Trevion Williams blow. That was a significant elbow right to the side of the head, I believe, or maybe the back of the head. And we all know how big Trevion Williams is," Holtmann said. "That was brutal. It was not that at all. As he was running back after the score, he hit Gillespie’s shoulder. The side of his cheek hit Gillespie’s shoulder. I watched it on video a couple different times, obviously I don’t know how the face hitting the shoulder impacts things, I just know what he felt. He did not feel it the same way he had, as severe as he had, against Trevion Williams. Could he have played next week? That I don’t know.”
Ive loved every minute I got to play in a Buckeye uniform and I am so grateful I had the opportunity to compete for this university. Im going to miss this with all of my heart but want to say thank you for all the love and support over the years https://t.co/Uo7oZbthAC
— Kyle Young (@kyle_young25) March 20, 2022
Following the 71-61 loss, Young issued a statement to Buckeye fans on social media, but did not specifically address the apparent injury that cost him the final few minutes of his college career.
“I’ve loved every minute I got to play in a Buckeye uniform and I am so grateful I had the opportunity to compete for this university,” Young wrote on Twitter. “I’m going to miss this with all of my heart but want to say thank you for all the love and support over the years.”
Young played in 135 games for the Buckeyes over the past five seasons and started 69 of them, including his final two in the NCAA Tournament this past weekend. Young averaged 6.5 points and 4.5 rebounds during a college career that made him a fan favorite with Ohio State supporters.
