It's likely that Roynell Young would agree with the old adage that timing is everything. Philadelphia's first-round draft choice in 1980, the Alcorn State cornerback joined the team the same season it posted a franchise-record 12 victories, won the NFC title and appeared in Super Bowl XV.

"I could be secure in the fact that it's not like you had 11 rookies out there. I was the only rookie amongst all those veterans," said Young. "And those guys with (head coach) Dick Vermeil were accustomed to and had learned how to win.

"It takes a unique personality like his to lead men and he had that undefinable thing that leaders have. He was able to melt together a group of individuals who may have not all been first-round draft choices, but guys that had integrity and were hungry. And while we didn't win (the Super Bowl), there was some special things that we accomplished along the way.

CB Roynell Young

"I remember telling (LB) John Bunting, 'Don't take it so hard. We'll be back next year.' Well, next year never happened. It really is a metaphor for life. When opportunities present themselves, you have to be fully equipped to maximize that opportunity because after the Super Bowl, a whole lot of things unraveled.

"I went through two owners and three or four coaches and never got a whiff of getting back to the Super Bowl. So I felt very privileged to have had that opportunity and to have walked into something like that."

Young didn't walk that same path again during the following eight seasons. In fact, the Eagles only made the playoffs two more times, both for single games.

Named as an All-Pro in 1981 and the team's defensive MVP five years later, Young's mindset regarding the game became crystal clear during the 1988 playoff loss to Chicago in what is now known as "The Fog Bowl."

"Defeated, battered, bruised and a finger hanging off my hand, it was at that moment that I realized that I didn't want to do that anymore," Young said. "I had lost the passion and the zeal to participate in that arena.

"My prayer going into the NFL was to ask the Lord to take away the desire if I could no longer physically do it. And it was on that day that God answered that prayer."

He continued: "One of the things that occurred to me when I was in my last two years in Philadelphia, I got more of a charge going out to (former Eagles RB) Herb Lusk's (Greater Exodus Baptist) church in North Philadelphia and being involved in programs for those who were disenfranchised. I derived more joy at serving individuals like that than I actually got from running up and down the football field.

"It was a bit alarming because as an athlete, you could never lose your focus like that. You have to have tunnel vision in order to maximize your ability. And it wasn't until the end of that game that I realized that maybe I've been looking at this thing too myopic. Maybe football isn't the end-all, be-all and that it's just a small step toward a larger vision for my life."

After a brief time working as an insurance broker, Young's vision has focused on making a difference in young men's lives in Houston, Texas. It began one Saturday on a schoolyard basketball court when he and a friend were challenged to a game by three boys from the neighborhood. That's when Young made a challenge of his own.

"The bet was if we win the game, that they would give us two hours of their time just to sit around and talk about life," said Young. "If they win the game, what we would do is buy pizza and soda. All they can eat! They took up the bet, but we won the game. After that, I said, 'We'll still buy the pizzas and sodas,' and so we sat down and talked with these three young men and it turned into about four hours. Just as adults do, we got on our soap box and told them what's wrong with the world and how they should approach it.

"We showed up the next Saturday and it wasn't three kids, there were 12. And the next Saturday, there would be 30 or 40 kids. At one point, we convinced the principal of this middle school to open the gym up on Saturday. So then there were 200 to 300 kids.

CB Roynell Young

"Word had spread that there's these two crazy old guys and they're going to give you a two-hour sermon, but if you listen and can endure it, they'll let you play basketball for four hours. That was kind of like bait and switch."

Those Saturday exchanges turned into Pro-Vision. (www.provision-inc.org). Initially an after-school program, it is now a partner with the Houston Independent School System.

"The premise of Pro-Vision existing was trying to help young men and families in crisis figure out what was that purpose," said Young, Pro-Vision's executive director. "How can they re-construct the value system that will allow for them to have success and meaning in their life.

"We provide some educational services for young men. We were the first in Texas to open up an all-boys school. We were the first in Texas to pioneer a residential program of public and private sector. Many of the young men who come to us are in need of a second chance.

"We have counseling services, some vocational things that are happening and we're right in the middle of a capital campaign. At the end of this year, we'll be breaking ground for a 32,000-square-foot multi-purpose facility. It will not only house the (125-student) middle school that we have, but it will also house the care and development programs. Also, we'll incorporate the parenting classes.

"So there's a whole host of things that we're doing to try to affect the lives of the young men that we're working with now. The funny thing that has occurred in trying to help young people find their way, it has really solidified my reason for why I was created.

"And so while I have fond memories of the NFL, I miss it not one day. I feel privileged to have been a part of it, but the kids who I work with are not interested in whether or not that has occurred. That's not the thing that makes me 'Coach Roy' around here."