Poly defensive end has Division I potential
The waiting game has begun for Poly senior Paul Taylor. 
The 6-foot-6, 245-pound defensive end and offensive tackle spent his summer as most Division 1-caliber recruits do – showcasing his talents for a host of college coaches at several camps and combines. One scholarship offer has been made, while Taylor hopes more could eventually be on the way.
“I went to Bryant, Delaware, Temple, Maryland [and] Syracuse,” said Taylor, the 10th-ranked defensive lineman in Maryland according to MDHigh.com. “… [Getting a scholarship] felt great. It’s sort of like the validation for work I’ve been doing so far. They told me to keep working and pushing myself. I’m one of the few to get an offer in this city, so it felt great. My family was pretty happy for me and my coaches were pretty happy for me.”
Bryant, a Football Championship Subdivision program in Rhode Island, was the school that offered him a scholarship. Taylor said Connecticut, Delaware, James Madison and William & Mary have been in contact, while Engineers coach Roger Wrenn has heard from several other programs.
“Kind of everybody who’s stopped through,” has been interested, Wrenn said. “Temple, Connecticut, Maryland, Syracuse, Georgia Tech – my old friend Joe Speed [Georgia Tech’s linebackers coach] called me and said, ‘Who’s this tall tackle you’ve got?’ I’m probably forgetting some along the way. But we had 55 different colleges come through in the spring, and a whole lot of them stuck around watching in the weight room.”
With Taylor, the college coaches saw an athletic, lean prospect who Wrenn says is still growing into his lanky frame. Taylor enrolled at Poly three years ago as a 5-foot-10 linebacker. He played his first season on junior varsity and then started to grow.
“We’re not sure he’s finished growing yet,” Wrenn said. “But a little bit like a Great Dane puppy, he hasn’t stopped growing enough to put on a lot of weight. This year, when basketball was over, we just totaled it up. He spent 80 days since basketball was over lifting in the weight room. But he’s gone from 215 when basketball was over to [last week] when he was 245.
“But a lot of people want to see his senior film and whatnot with a bigger body. ... We just think he’s so agile and pulls and does athletic things on the offensive line, and he’s definitely just relentless and has these long arms that are just hard to throw the ball over.”
Taylor, a strong student with Ivy League interest, isn’t the only Poly player that could have a Div. I future. Junior defensive back Donovan Riley, former Gilman athlete Dexter Davis and senior running back Gabriel Ali-El all fared well on the combine circuit this summer.
“Not often in my career have I had four really significant playmakers and a couple other guys,” Wrenn said. “So this should be interesting.”
Taylor recognizes how crucial the start of his senior season is for attracting attention – and new offers – from colleges. His plan, however, is to approach his last year at Poly no different than how he’s handled his business before.
“It was always just go out and play. It was never any pressure,” Taylor said. “Whatever I’ve done before has gotten me to this point, so if I continue to work hard and keep playing, hopefully more will come. I never really felt any pressure. … I’ll probably end up making the decision after the season. So I’ll just see what happens.”
Baltimore Sun photo of Paul Taylor (51) by Kim Hairston / Nov. 7, 2009
