When the Midland Legacy offense was rolling this season, the consistently high production from its workhorse running back was on full display.
Makhilyn Young ran for 1,870 yards and 33 touchdowns during the regular season (2,132, 36 overall), becoming the third Rebel in program history to run for 2,000 yards in a campaign.
He put his name alongside those of Cedric Benson and Farris Strambler to make history for his team.
Young’s performance has led to him being named the Odessa American’s 2021 Offensive Player of the Year.
Midland Legacy head coach Clint Hartman said he knew Young would be a special player from the time he was in junior high.
“You could see he was athletic but you also saw how hard he worked and how much he wanted to be great,” Hartman said. “I think midseason his sophomore season, whenever we looked up and he was averaging eight or nine yards a carry we said, ‘Maybe he’s a little better than we thought.’”
After splitting carries as a sophomore, Young locked down the spot and helped the Rebels become a team to beat in District 2-6A.
The running back helped Midland Legacy finish the season with a 10-2 mark, claiming an outright district championship for the first time since 1999.
Young said some of his favorite memories of his senior campaign include taking the field with his teammates every week.
He added that each game brought new learning experiences that he’ll carry with him for the rest of his playing career.
“I learned a lot of how to work even more together as a brotherhood this year than any other year,” Young said.
Midland Legacy advanced to the area round of the Class 6A Division I playoffs, where it fell by a 42-7 score against Southlake Carroll.
Before his record-breaking year, the running back did a lot of work off the field to make sure his body would be in optimal conditions to handle a large workload.
He carried the ball 279 times and also reeled in 26 catches for 389 yards.
Young said his preparation for his next step started directly after the season-ending loss to Southlake Carroll.
Just last week, the senior signed on to play at the Division I FBS level at New Mexico State under new head coach Jerry Kill.
“It was a dream of mine,” Young said. “When you write a dream down on paper and it actually comes true, it feels different.
“I’m just getting started and I have some other goals to accomplish in college.”
Hartman saw his running back put in the extra work to make an impact on the field throughout his three seasons on the varsity squad.
The head coach said Young put on around 25 or 30 pounds from his sophomore season, along with getting faster.
“That just doesn’t happen, you’ve got to work at it,” Hartman said. “He’d do what we’d ask him to do and also extras.”
When Kill was on the TCU coaching staff, he had interest in Young and that carried over to when he took over the head coaching position at New Mexico State in November.
Young said his new coach told him he would take him along wherever he went.
The running back is currently doing offseason workouts with his trainer and Rebel teammate Wesley Smith to prepare for the challenges he might face in college.
Hartman said the person Young is off the field stands out as much as what he did between the hashes.
“The accolades he deserves those, he had multiple records and all those things but I love him for off the field more than I love him on the field,” Hartman said. “On the field, he earned that but in today’s age you see a lot of selfish, good football players and he’s not one of those.”
The head coach is anticipating special things from the history-making tailback.
Young officially closed out his high school career with 4,432 rushing yards to go with 63 scores on the ground. He added another 586 receiving, with four touchdowns.
Hartman said Young just has to stay the course to continue his success in college.
“He just has to stay consistent, don’t lose his way,” Hartman said. “He’s been raised right and has a good plan.”
>> Follow Chris Amaya on Twitter at @OA_CAmaya
Makhilyn Young, RB
Offensive Player of the Year
Midland Legacy, 5-10, 180, Sr.
>> Key Stats: Finished with 240 carries for 1,870 yards and 33 touchdowns, along with 24 catches for 389 yards and two touchdowns during the regular season. Finished with 2,524 all-purpose yards for the Rebels.
>> Midland Legacy coach Clint Hartman says: “The accolades he deserves those, he had multiple records and all those things but I love him for off the field more than I love him on the field. On the field, he earned that but in today’s age you see a lot of selfish, good football players and he’s not one of those.”
