The folks at Reebok were kind enough to set aside a few minutes for us to chat with Tennessee Titans QB Vince Young. We’re fairly certain that Young has never heard of our site, and the word blog is almost certainly not part of his lexicon. Still, he was kind enough to play along, all in the name of promoting his new shoe, VY Electrify. After the jump: He’s close to a degree, the infamous shirtless photo, talking to out-of-control Longhorns and his reaction to the Titans’ first-round draft pick.

Q: So tell us about the shoe.

YOUNG: The shoe is definitely a dream come true. It’s something I’ve been looking forward to since I was a little kid. I used to see guys like Deion Sanders and players of that caliber getting their own shoe, and Reebok granted me a huge wish of mine. This is pretty cool, man.

Q: How long had the shoe plan been in the works? Because when that whole retirement business emerged in the news, Reebok must have been sweating things out.

YOUNG: Naw - Reebok understood what I was saying. That was all blown out of proportion. It’s the kind of thing that comes along with being a QB. I never said i wanted to quit football. Playing in the NFL, that’s like a dream, you know? But when you have people asking you for money everyday, and stuff like that, it takes the excitement out of the game. People dragging on you left and right … it takes the fun away. But I didn’t want to retire.

Q: Busy offseason for you - the shoe, going back to Texas to take classes … what’d you take?

YOUNG: Oh, it was busy. I definitely want to get my degree and send that message out to kids. I’m only one credit away and I’l be walking across that stage next May. I don’t understand how more people don’t want to go back - how can you sit in college all those years, make the grade, and not want to get a degree? It’s like you wasted your time if you don’t. I’m an education major, and I took lit classes and child development classes.

Q: How’d you find time to work the shoe into the week?

YOUNG: I told Reebok I had classes on Monday and Tuesday, and then Tuesday night I’d fly back to Nashville and work out with [offensive] coach Heimerdinger, and I’d fly back to Austin on Friday for class. I spent a lot of time in Austin working out with the Longhorns, and helping those young guys get it together. A lot of guys down there were getting in trouble doing negative stuff. They weren’t representing the school right and getting in fights and getting DWIs … I’ve built a foundation and me and a few other guys [Rod Wright, Tim Crowder and Selvin Young] really spoke to the players and told them they need to start representing the school the right way.

Q: That’s wild - you’re attempting to be a role model by getting an education and talking to college football players, and yet and the massive story about you this summer centers around a shirtless photo at the club.

YOUNG: That irked me a whole lot. I’m trying to build an image and be a role model that God wants me to be. I don’t understand what’s wrong with having fun with a lot of guys I haven’t seen in a long time. We had a couple drinks, but nobody drove home. Somebody must have wanted to make money, and they put the pictures out there. That comes with being an NFL QB, I guess. There were other football players there, but you won’t hear their names mentioned. But it was bad because I didn’t want kids and parents to see that stuff and say, ‘he’s not the right role model.’ That’s why I apologized. But I’m going to continue to have fun.

Q: The photos made their way around the web pretty fast - what’s your take on new media? Is it something you have to deal with, or is it not that big a deal? Do you surf the net? Read blogs?

YOUNG: You gotta be careful be careful when you go out, period. I’m the type of guy that doesn’t like to be at home all the time. I get bored and I like to go out and interact with people. But you just have to be careful with what’s going on. I definitely don’t have time to be on the internet, but some people will tell me what’s being said. But I know what’s really happening, and that’s all that matters.

Q: Where’d you watch the NFL Draft? And when they announced the Titans’ pick, how crushed were you?

YOUNG: I was at school watching it with a couple guys. When I heard the announcement, I was kind of shocked because I wanted to add more help to the offense. But I have a lot of confidence in the guys around me. Chemistry-wise, we’re going to be real good. And Chris Johnson, our No. 1 pick, will bring a lot to the team. We’re moving him all around, and between him and Alge [Crumpler] defensives can’t really focus on one guy. We’re going to have LenDale coming out of the backfield, and we’re really going to spread the ball around.