Jim Young James Norman " Dirty Thirty " Young ( born June 6 , 1943 in Hamilton , Ontario ) is a former professional American football and Canadian football player . Young played running back and wide receiver for the NFL ' s Minnesota Vikings for one season ( 1965 - 66 ) , and the CFL ' s BC Lions for twelve seasons ( 1967 - 79 ) . Young is a member of Canada ' s Sports Hall of Fame , the Canadian Football Hall of Fame , the BC Sports Hall of Fame , and the Queen ' s University Football Hall of Fame . Young ' s # 30 jersey is one of eight numbers retired by the BC Lions . In 2003 , Young was voted a member of the BC Lions All - Time Dream Team as part of the club ’ s 50 year anniversary celebration . In 2006 , Young was voted to the Honour Roll of the CFL ' s top 50 players of the league ' s modern era by Canadian sports network TSN . Young was nicknamed " " Dirty Thirty " " , for his aggressive style and jersey number . Sports journalist Jim Taylor would write a football biography of Young featuring the same name . National Football League - Minnesota Vikings . Young was the first CIS football player , playing for Queens University , drafted into the National Football League in 1965 . He played Running back / halfback for the Minnesota Vikings in the 1965 and 1966 seasons ( playing 6 games , rushing 3 times for 4 yards , and returning 6 punts ) . Young ended up signing with the Canadian Football League ' s BC Lions in a multi - player " trade " between the NFL and the CFL teams , one of the very few transactions to ever occur between the two leagues . Young wanted to return to Canada , and the BC Lions were very interested in acquiring him , however the Toronto Argonauts had his CFL rights . The Minnesota Vikings were very interested in signing BC Lions quarterback Joe Kapp . The Minnesota Vikings general manager at the time was Jim Finks , who had brought Kapp to Canada back in the 1959 CFL season , and their head coach was Bud Grant who had faced Kapp while coaching the Winnipeg Blue Bombers . Both Finks and Grant , wanted to sign Joe Kapp to replace Fran Tarkenton who had been traded to the New York Giants . To make this transaction possible , the BC Lions traded all - star defensive lineman Dick Fouts , and future Canadian Football Hall of Fame running back Bill Symons to the Argonauts for the CFL rights to Jim Young . They then managed getting Kapp waived out of the Canadian Football League . The Minnesota Vikings managed getting Jim Young waived out of the NFL . The expansion New Orleans Saints wanted Young and it took some work from Finks to keep them from claiming Young . Young , now waived from the NFL , signed with the BC Lions and Joe Kapp , who was waived from the CFL , was free to sign with the Minnesota Vikings , who had previously claimed his NFL playing rights from the Washington Redskins . Canadian Football League - BC Lions . Young played from the 1967 to 1979 season with the BC Lions ( for 197 games , ) primarily as a wide receiver . Young was named a CFL All - Star at wide receiver for the 1972 season , and was a two - time Western Conference All Star at two positions ( running back in 1969 , wide receiver in 1972 ) . Young was awarded the CFL ' s Most Outstanding Canadian Award in the 1970 and 1972 seasons . He gained a reputation for his hard nosed play , hence the nickname " Dirty 30 " . His style of play forced defensive backs to watch out for him . Young previously held several BC Lions team records , including most receptions , 552 , most receiving yards , 9248 , and most receiving touchdowns , with 65 . These now are all held by Geroy Simon . He is one of only two Lions to surpass the 10 , 000 yard mark overall and he dominated the Lions offense for many years despite playing with 23 different quarterbacks . He saw action in five playoff seasons for B . C . and still ranks as the fifth all - time leading scorer in club history at 410 points . Young ' s # 30 jersey is one of eight numbers retired by the Lions . Post football playing career and awards . Young joined the BC Lions team management after his retirement , and briefly coached the Lions on an interim basis during the 1990 CFL season . In 1991 , Young was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame . In 1994 , he was inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame . In 2002 , he was inducted into Canada ' s Sports Hall of Fame . In November , 2006 , Young was voted to the Honour Roll of the CFL ' s top 50 players of the league ' s modern era by Canadian sports network TSN . In 2011 he was an inaugural inductee in the BC Football Hall of Fame . References . http : / / www . thespec . com / sports / local / article / 611275 - - young - flies - from - b - c - to - enter - westdale - hall - of - fame