Tag: Brien Taylor

Coveted JUCO defensive lineman signs with Florida football

The Florida Gators officially signed a three-star JUCO defensive lineman to the class of 2024

A three-star elite JUCO defensive lineman put his name to paper on Wednesday, signing to the Florida Gators after verbally committing last week.

Blinn College edge defender [autotag]Brien Taylor[/autotag] is officially a member of the 2024 Gators squad following his latest move during the early signing period.

The 6-foot-5-inch, 290-pound gridiron giant has always been vocal about his admiration of the UF campus and football coaching staff and felt satisfied that he was still made to feel like a priority after the Gators made changes to its defensive staff.

“Even after coach (Sean) Spencer was let go, they pushed even harder to make sure I knew I was still a priority and everything was real from the jump,” he told On3. “They like folks like me. I’ve never had anything handed to me; I go get what I want.”

Taylor wants to take advantage of the depleting Gators roster and make an immediate impression after making his way to Gainesville.

“I have the opportunity to make an instant impact. I got everything I need. I’ll be practicing against the best players to be able to get to the next level.”

Taylor is the No. 14 overall prospect among JUCO recruits and ranked No. 4 at the edge position for the class of 2024. Taylor chose the Gators over the likes of the Auburn Tigers, Tennessee Volunteers, Oregon Ducks and Georgia Bulldogs.

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Florida football earns commitment from JUCO defensive lineman

The Florida Gators earned a commitment from a three-star JUCO defensive lineman.

Florida football earned a commitment from a highly regarded three-star JUCO recruit on Monday afternoon, bolstering its efforts in restocking the roster after a disappointing season.

Defensive lineman [autotag]Brien Taylor[/autotag] announced his commitment to the Orange and Blue with the help of national recruiting expert Hayes Fawcett, who posted the news on X. Included in the post is a good-looking graphic of Taylor donning Florida’s new blackout jerseys with an interesting caption, mentioning how the Gators are essentially starting over.

“The whole town is invested into Gator football, and I’m ready to contribute to a rebuild,” Taylor said.

Taylor isn’t necessarily taking shots at the UF program, but showing that he’s willing to give it all when it comes to bringing the Gators back to the standard that Florida fans have come to know.

The 247Sports composite JUCO has him ranked No. 8 overall and No. 3 at his position nationally in the 2024 cycle while On3’s JC industry ranking has him No. 14 overall and No. 4 at edge defender nationally.

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Florida football still in pursuit of coveted JUCO defensive lineman

The Gators appear to have the inside track for this big-time defensive lineman transfer.

The college football transfer portal is currently wide open as a myriad of student-athletes seek the next stop on their collegiate journeys. Among the many schools looking to reload following the 2023 campaign are the Florida Gators, who have many positions of need.

This past weekend, Billy Napier and Co. hosted a handful of recruiting targets, including three-star defensive lineman [autotag]Brien Taylor[/autotag] out of Blinn College in Texas on Sunday. The 6-foot-5-inch, 270-pound defender came away impressed with what the Orange and Blue had to offer.

“I love everything about it, for real,” Taylor told Swamp247. “The whole coaching staff and everybody involved in UF… it seems real family oriented and they make you know when you come here, it ain’t just football. They’re going to make sure you’re prepared for life as a man. You’re going to develop different characteristics that you need and will help you in life. It’s the No. 1 public school so it’s somewhere to be, for sure.”

However, Florida is not the only major suitor for the lineman’s talents. The Oklahoma State Cowboys, Auburn Tigers, Georgia Bulldogs and Tennessee Volunteers have also hosted him for official visits as well. Nonetheless, Taylor seems to be high on Gainesville as his next destination.

“He said this is the place to be,” Taylor said, “and that we can turn it around, for real.”

The one area where Florida has faltered in his recruitment was with the dismissal of defensive line coach Sean Spencer, stating that he “wasn’t happy” with the move. The good news is that defensive line graduate assistant Kali James and outside linebackers coach Mike Peterson, who had already been involved in his recruitment, have picked up the slack.

“The staff and everybody made sure to do a good job,” Taylor said. “Make sure that even though Coach Spencer’s gone, I’m still a priority.”

Taylor appeared in 13 games in two seasons at Blinn College, amassing 39 total tackles, including 9.5 for a loss, 2.0 sacks and a forced fumble.

The 247Sports composite JUCO has him ranked No. 8 overall and No. 3 at his position nationally in the 2024 cycle while On3’s JC industry ranking has him No. 14 overall and No. 4 at edge defender nationally.

The Gators have three crystal ball predictions for Taylor from 247Sports while On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine gives Florida a 94.7% chance of landing him.

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Florida pushing hard for this JUCO defensive lineman

Blinn College (JUCO) defensive lineman Brien Taylor was in Gainesville this weekend, and he has an official visit planned with UF as well.

Florida hosted several players on unofficial visits over the weekend, including Blinn College defensive lineman [autotag]Brien Taylor[/autotag].

Taylor entered the transfer portal after a successful stint with the Buccaneers, earning a three-star JUCO transfer rating from 247Sports. Florida offered him back in September, but it took him until now to get on campus. Taylor hoped to take an official visit this weekend, but it ended up getting switched to a three-day unofficial.

He was able to experience the Florida-FSU game and left town picturing himself in the Orange and Blue.

“I like their defense,” Taylor said to 247Sports’ Blake Alderman. “They were playing well and have some dogs. From seeing them, I felt like I could be someone to help make an impact. Felt like I could be someone to make an impact if I come in there and put in that work.”

Taylor should return for an official visit on Dec. 8, and he’s likely to make a decision shortly after that trip to Gainesville. Auburn, Georgia, Oklahoma State and Tennessee have already hosted him on official visits, though. It won’t be easy to secure the 6-foot-5-inch, 270-pounder, but Taylor seems keen on Florida.

“They are in there for sure. They are for sure in the top of the ranks. It’s going to come down to Florida being one of my final schools for sure.”

Florida will lose a few veteran pieces of the defensive line this offseason. Adding Taylor would be a nice way to counter those losses.

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Five-star DL LJ McCray commits to Florida over Auburn, Georgia

Auburn was a finalist for one of the top defensive lineman in the country but was unable to beat out the in-state Gators.

Auburn was hoping to land their third five-star commitment of the 2024 recruiting class on Saturday but it wasn’t meant to be as defensive lineman [autotag]LJ McCray[/autotag] committed to the Florida Gators.

The Daytona Beach, Florida native picked the Gators over Auburn, Georgia, Florida State and Miami.

McCray was one of Auburn’s top targets in the cycle and he took several visits to the Plains, including one to watch Auburn take on Georgia in Jordan-Hare Stadium earlier this season.

While missing out on McCray stings, they do have commitments from three defensive linemen in four-star prospects TJ Lindsey and Malik Blocton as well as three-star Dimitry Nicolas.

[autotag]Jeremy Garrett[/autotag] also has Auburn pushing to flip elite defensive lineman [autotag]Jeremiah Beamen[/autotag] from Alabama and land JUCO prospect [autotag]Brien Taylor[/autotag].

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Gators to get coveted JUCO DE for December official visit

Florida’s is looking to woo this JUCO defensive end to the Orange and Blue.

Billy Napier and Co. have built a formidable recruiting class in the 2024 cycle, but their work is nowhere near complete. Among the Gators targets as the class wraps up is a junior college player from the Lone Star State.

Three-star defensive end [autotag]Brien Taylor[/autotag] out of Blinn College (Texas) recently told Gators Online’s Keith Niebuhr that he plans to officially visit the University of Florida on Dec. 8.

The 6-foot-5-inch, 290-pound trench warrior also has an official visit with the Auburn Tigers this weekend and Georgia Bulldogs on Nov. 11. He made an official visit with the Oklahoma State Cowboys in September.

“It was like a dream come true,” Taylor said his offer from Florida. “The opportunity to play in that stadium for a team I watched growing up. Tim Tebow. Cam Newton. That’s one of the loudest stadiums.”

Niebuhr asked Taylor what he was looking for in his collegiate destination.

“Somewhere that feels like a home away from home,” the JUCO standout responded. “Somewhere I can get used to. And somewhere I feel needed and wanted at the same time. Someplace that has my best interest at hand.”

Taylor is ranked No. 15 overall and No. 6 at his position nationally according to 247SportsJUCO while the On3 JC industry ranking has him ranked at Nos. 13 and 3, respectively. On3’s recruiting prediction machine has Auburn in the lead with a 29% chance of signing him, followed by Georgia (25.4%), Florida (21.7%) and the Tennessee Volunteers (18.1%).

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Recently offered JUCO DL Brien Taylor sets official visit to Auburn

Auburn has entered the race for Brien Taylor and he has already scheduled an official visit to the Plains.

Auburn defensive line coach [autotag]Jeremy Garrett[/autotag] has dipped into the JUCO ranks with his latest scholarship offer, the recipient is [autotag]Brien Taylor[/autotag] and it’s safe to say that he is excited about the offer.

“The offer, it was real exciting,” Taylor told Christian Clemente of Auburn Undercover. “My dog, one of my best friends, he goes there. He’s the left tackle ([autotag]Dillon Wade[/autotag]) at Auburn. That’s real exciting that we’d be able to live out the dream if Auburn was home for me.”

Taylor and Wade have been friends since childhood and both played at Cy Fall High School in Houston, Texas. Auburn is far from the only SEC school pursuing Taylor though, he has offers from Georgia, Florida, Tennessee and Mississippi State.

Taylor is the No. 12 overall player and the No. 3 defensive lineman in the 247Sports JUCO rankings. He is also the No. 2 player from Texas.

The 6-foot-5, 270-pounder is currently playing his sophomore season at Blinn College and will have two seasons of eligibility at his next school. With limited time left to play he is looking to make an immediate impact at his next stop, something Auburn can offer with several players set to graduate after this season along the defensive line.

Taylor has already set an official visit to Auburn for Oct. 21, the weekend Auburn will host Ole Miss. He has also scheduled official visits to Georgia (Nov. 11) and Florida (Nov. 25) and previously took one to Oklahoma State.

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Gators extend offer to top JUCO defensive lineman

A three-star JUCO defensive lineman received an offer from Florida Gators coaches this week and wants to set up a visit to the Florida campus.

The Florida Gators are eyeing a top performer from a JUCO football program.

Defensive lineman [autotag]Brien Taylor[/autotag] has been tearing it up in his stint at Blinn Junior College and the Florida Gators have taken notice. The team sent an official offer to Taylor this week.

Taylor has been aware of the Florida scouts on his trail and told 247Sports he’s pondering the offer.

“I know they been on my trail for a little while,” Taylor said. “I have been talking with them for a little while now, but this week they made it official with an offer.”

“(The Gators want) a guy to come in with a chip on their shoulder on the d-line to come in and make Florida better.”

Co-defensive coordinator Sean Spencer has been in touch with Taylor and the talks have reportedly been positive on both ends, getting to know each other now that the offer has been made.

For those unfamiliar, Blinn C.C. is the same JUCO school that former Gator and NFL quarterback Cam Newton attended for a year before becoming a national champion with Auburn in 2010.

Taylor hopes to visit the UF campus during his team’s bye week.

“Florida gotta be my next visit,” Taylor said. “I got another bye week in October, so I hope Florida can be in the talks for a visit then for sure. It’s gotta be an official visit for me. I am trying to see game day really. If I can’t get there on my bye week, I will try to do what I can to get out there, but I want to see a game.”

Taylor plans to visit Oklahoma State this season which gives Florida some stiff competition. The young recruit plans to make a verbal commitment by his birthday on Nov. 13.

“I just have to see if it works out,” Taylor said. “That date may be where I know where I am doing in my head. I may not announce it till December if I need to.”

Taylor is a three-star lineman according to 247Sports and is ranked as the No. 12 recruit in the nation.

Taylor will continue to play with Blinn until the end of the season and until then, Coach Spencer will keep contact and hope to attract Taylor to Florida.

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