I think you are absolutely dead-on Crash. I deal with and have dealt with many YEC's over the years (and also having been one, but very long ago). It seems to be a recent phenomena, perhaps Discovery Institute inspired, to claim to be secular creationists.
The student I had so many problems this semester with is a great example. She loves to use very broad and very vague terminology that implies that there is an large, ongoing research program that has nothing to do with religion but happens to support the conclusions of YEC. When pressed for details none come up. When pressed further I get the Law of Biogenesis with a dismissal (no lie, literally "I think it is funny that creation scientists know more about science than you people who claim to be scientists") but no actual points.
This same student often mentions holes in the ToE, scientific mysteries that imply creation but are just left unanswered because the scientists would have to admit God but cannot because they would be fired, etc. But again no details. It goes to the level of fraud (not just on what she has been told but on her part) because she continuously implies that she knows of these facts but all I can get are "You wouldn't believe it anyway", "You need to research it yourself" etc. As if she is holding in her head this huge amount of knowledge that I am somehow denied.
About my own field!
But what is funny (sorry for the venting, makes me feel better and is related to the topic) is that she also told me she could not do the research paper she wanted because I required peer-reviewed sources (for a freakin' historical geology course, damn I am a jackass). I said she could totally do that topic, just get the sources. She countered (get ready to laugh) by saying that it was unfair because I define peer review to mean only those sources that agree with me. I decided that ICR articles were not peer reviewed so stacked the deck against her! It was truly amazing. I had no idea, none at all, that a lowly assistant prof from Sitka Alaska had the power to decide what was peer-reviewed and what was not. So beware scientists and future scientists out there: unless you agree with me I just might make your pubs non-peer reviewed!
Doctor Bashir: "Of all the stories you told me, which were true and which weren't?"
Elim Garak: "My dear Doctor, they're all true"
Doctor Bashir: "Even the lies?"
Elim Garak: "Especially the lies"
™ Version 4.2