Then a sophomore, Darvin Taylor II made a splash in the spring of 2013 when he landed offers from Florida State, Miami, and Virginia Tech in a span of a few days. The 6’3”, 285-pound Thomas Dale (Chester, VA) product, who just completed his junior season on the gridiron, reports that he now has nine scholarship offers.
Clemson, Maryland, N.C. State, Old Dominion, South Carolina and West Virginia have also come through for Taylor, one of many top class of 2015 prospects in Blacksburg last Saturday for the Maryland game. This wasn’t the standout defensive tackle’s first trip to Tech, but it was his first regular season game experience in Lane Stadium.
“I thought it was a pretty good game. I’m happy me and my family went up to see it,” said Taylor, who attended Tech’s Spring Game in 2013 and also participated in the July 13 one-day camp.
“I think the defense would be a pretty good fit for me. I was keeping an eye on the defensive tackles, seeing how the coaches coach them when they came off the field. I thought the coaches were pretty good. I watched the type of pressure the tackles put on the other team. A lot of people say big linemen aren’t supposed to run down the field, but (Skip) Hopkins did on one of those plays. I liked that.”
Taylor has also visited Florida State, Maryland, Penn State, Virginia and West Virginia this fall. Is there a favorite?
“No sir,” replied Taylor, who said he fields this question every day. “I’ll probably have a top five by my senior year. I’ll probably make my decision at the end of my senior football season.”
Although he is disappointed his team was ousted from the playoffs last week, Taylor is pleased with how he performed in his junior season.
“I finally scored a touchdown. And I finally got my first interception,” said Taylor, who started at defensive tackle and offensive tackle for head coach Kevin Tucker. “I was a lot more explosive this year. I stayed a lot lower. I still have some aspects I need to improve, but I’ll work on those in the offseason.”
More Notes on Darvin Taylor II
– Taylor’s father, who has served in the military for 30 years, played football on the high school level. Taylor’s sister is a senior on the Newberry College women’s basketball team.
– Taylor was born in Germany. Texas was the next destination for him and his family, followed by Korea. He has been in Virginia for five years.
– Taylor recalled his first touchdown on the high school level.
“It was like a dream come true,” he said. “It was on a fumble recovery. I remember picking up the ball and running into the end zone. I just kept running.”
– Taylor’s favorite NFL players? JJ Watt and DeMarcus Ware
TSL’s Take
Thomas Dale is a school Tech has recruited very well, particularly in recent years. Current Hokies Desmond Frye and Quinton Taylor attended Dale. Former Knight DJ Reid signed with Tech in 2013 and is in a postgrad year at FUMA. He intends on enrolling at Tech in January of 2014. And CJ Reavis will sign with the Hokies in February of 2014. These connections certainly help Virginia Tech, though I wouldn’t call Taylor to VT a sure thing right now. Location may not be a big factor because Taylor has only lived in the Commonwealth for five years. He also seemed impressed by the FSU visit in particular. But I do think Tech is one of the top contenders and Taylor has been impressed with previous trips, so I expect Tech to be one of the finalists in the end.
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This isn’t on the subject of the article and maybe you already addressed this but has the football and basketball teams every played the #1 team in the same year?