MIDDLEBURG - University of Florida basketball standout Patric Young, a Southeastern Conference defensive player of year and a three-time scholar athlete, admitted to the patrons of True Life Church of Clay Sunday morning that he just "sprinkled" God into his life when he was considered one of the best at his craft on a basketball court.
"It breaks my own heart when I think about who I was before I accepted Jesus Christ," said Young, now 33. "I grew up with religion, but I was just like sprinkling Jesus into my life like you sprinkle salt on a meal. I was saying all the right things and yet living a completely different way."

As a high schooler, Young was a late starter considering many star athletes start in their younger years, but Young got started and never looked back while playing for Paxon and Providence high schools in Jacksonville.
"When you want to go to college and you finally get there; first time of being an individual, being responsible for yourself, and you think 'I got this'," said Young, now 33, "I thought the basketball part; building chemistry with my teammates, strength training, film sessions, all that would be easy until basketball wasn't easy."
Young did work hard to be a Gator after a stellar high school career at Paxon and Providence high schools in Jacksonville and being named a high school McDonald's All-American, but Gator coach Billy Donovan was not quite happy.
"Basketball wasn't easy and I didn't know what the problem was because I was in my own way," said Young. "So much so that coach Donovan (Gator coach Billy Donovan) came up to me and said 'Hey Patric, we love you, we love you, but if you are not going to allow us to coach you, you might consider transferring and going somewhere else."
Young contemplated the meaning of Donovan's words.
"Truth without love is brutal," said Young. "By me letting the external voices be the ones I listen to the most; people who were not championship coaches as coach Donovan was. Coach Donovan because he loved me had to call me out and speak that truth with love. It changed my life."
From that moment, Young transformed into a basketball machine for the Gators with 2014 being his outstanding basketball year as the Gators won 30 games; 18 in a row at one point, three Elite Eights and one Final Four. Young would graduate, play pro ball for a short stint in the NBA, then play in Europe before an injury ended his career.
"I wound up having an outstanding senior season because I became a better teammate and a better person," said Young. "Injuries cut my career and I knew not being able to play basketball was not the end of the world."
From there, in 2021, Young became an ESPN analyst for SEC basketball and life was good.
Until June 29, 2022, when a single car accident in Nebraska changed his life.
"I was challenged on everything in life; my trust, my faith, my obedience, my belief system," said Young. "A car accident is what put me in this chair."
Young continued that his whole God belief system was now challenged.
"I'm Patric Young, God, what are you doing?" said Young. "This doesn't happen to me. How foolish of me. I remember just crying out to God."
Young recalled that it was not something someone said to him or something he read, but it was a revelation of a piece of scripture.


"I grew up in a religious house and I remembered James 1:2-4 (ESV), 'Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds'," said Young. "Trials are inevitable. That alone says we should expect hard things are going to happen and I almost thought God seeked me out to test my faith."
Young, ironically, admitted that his adversity may have been the best thing that ever happened to him.
"The first 30 years of my life was all about me," said Young. "My heart, though, was not truly submitted to everything."
Young ended his visit with a book signing with his book Sit to Rise and encourage people to be a part of his PY4Foundation that offers services, donations and fundraising for friends with spinal cord injuries.