Joe Taylor (American football coach) facts for kids
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Athletic director |
| Team | Virginia Union |
| Conference | CIAA |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | May 7, 1950 Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Alma mater | Western Illinois (1972) |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1972–1977 | H. D. Woodson HS (DC) (assistant) |
| 1978–1979 | Eastern Illinois (OL) |
| 1980–1981 | Virginia Union (OC) |
| 1982 | Howard (DC) |
| 1983 | Howard |
| 1984–1991 | Virginia Union |
| 1992–2007 | Hampton |
| 2008–2012 | Florida A&M |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 2013–present | Virginia Union |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 232–96–4 |
| Bowls | 1–0 |
| Tournaments | 1–5 (NCAA D-II playoffs) 0–5 (NCAA D-I-AA playoffs) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 5 Black college national (1994, 1997, 2004–2006) 4 CIAA (1986, 1992–1994) 6 MEAC (1997–1998, 2004–2006, 2010) 2 CIAA Northern Division (1986, 1990) |
|
| Awards | |
| 4× MEAC Coach of the Year (1997, 2004–2006) | |
| College Football Hall of Fame Inducted in 2019 |
|
Joe Taylor (born May 7, 1950) is an American sports leader and former football coach. He is currently the athletic director at Virginia Union University in Richmond, Virginia. He has held this important role since 2013.
Before becoming an athletic director, Taylor was a very successful head football coach. He coached at Howard University in 1983, Virginia Union University from 1984 to 1991, Hampton University from 1992 to 2007, and Florida A&M University from 2008 to 2012. Throughout his coaching career, he won 232 games, lost 96, and had 4 ties.
Coach Taylor led the Hampton Pirates to five national championships for historically black colleges (in 1994, 1997, 2004, 2005, and 2006). His teams also won eight conference titles. Because of his amazing achievements, he was added to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2019.
Contents
Joe Taylor's Early Life and Coaching Beginnings
Joe Taylor was born in Washington, D.C.. He finished college at Western Illinois University in 1972. After graduating, he started his coaching journey at H. D. Woodson High School in Washington, D.C. There, he taught physical education and coached wrestling, football, and baseball.
In 1978, Taylor moved to Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois. He became the offensive line coach, helping the team reach the 1978 NCAA Division II Football Championship.
In 1980, Taylor took on the role of offensive coordinator at Virginia Union University. This is a historically black university (HBCU) in Richmond, Virginia. After two years, he became the defensive coordinator at Howard University, another HBCU in Washington, D.C. In 1983, he became the head football coach at Howard, where his team had a 1–9 record.
Coaching Success at Virginia Union
In 1984, Joe Taylor returned to Virginia Union University as the head football coach. In 1986, his team had a perfect regular season. They won the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association championship and played in the NCAA Division II playoffs.
His teams also made it to the Division II playoffs in 1990 and 1991. The 1990 team also had an undefeated season. During his eight years at Virginia Union, Coach Taylor's record was 60 wins, 19 losses, and 3 ties. This shows he was a very successful coach there.
Hampton University: A Winning Era
From 1992 to 2007, Coach Taylor was the head football coach at Hampton University. This is an HBCU located in Hampton, Virginia. For his first three years, Hampton played in NCAA Division II and the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA).
In 1993, Taylor's team had a perfect regular season. They reached the national playoffs and were the first CIAA team to win 12 games in a single season. In 1994, Hampton set a new CIAA record for total offense. They gained 5,575 yards and were the first CIAA team to average over 500 yards per game. By the end of 1994, Hampton had won 23 games in a row against CIAA opponents.
In 1995, Hampton moved up to NCAA Division I-AA (now called Division I FCS). They joined the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) in 1996. Coach Taylor continued his winning ways at this higher level. He became the most successful football coach in Hampton's history.
His Hampton teams won five black college national championships. These were in 1994, 1997, 2004, 2005, and 2006. They also won eight conference titles (three in the CIAA and five in the MEAC). They won the 1999 Heritage Bowl and made seven trips to the NCAA playoffs. He was named MEAC Coach of the Year three years in a row, from 2004 to 2006.
The senior players on Taylor's 2006 team won three black college national championships in a row. Coach Taylor believed the 2006 team was the best in Hampton's history. He said they were 22–2 in their conference over three seasons. They had an overall record of 31–4 during that time.
During his 16 years at Hampton, Coach Taylor had a record of 136 wins, 49 losses, and one tie. Many great Hampton Pirate players went on to play in the National Football League and Canadian Football League. Some of these players include Kendall Langford, Justin Durant, Alonzo Coleman, Jerome Mathis, and Darian Barnes.
Florida A&M University and Retirement
In December 2007, Coach Taylor announced he would leave Hampton to coach at Florida A&M University (FAMU). FAMU is an HBCU in Tallahassee, Florida. When Taylor arrived, the FAMU football team had been struggling.
In his first two seasons at FAMU, Coach Taylor quickly turned the program around. His teams had records of 9–3 in 2008 and 8–3 in 2009. In November 2009, FAMU's athletic director, Bill Hayes, praised Taylor. He said Taylor had recruited better players and organized the program well. The players believed in his plan to build a winning team.
On November 3, 2012, Coach Taylor told his players he would retire at the end of the season. Just four days later, he announced he was resigning right away.
Joe Taylor's Personal Life
Joe Taylor is married to Beverly Richardson. They have two adult sons, Aaron Taylor and Dennis Taylor. He is also a member of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.
See also
- List of college football career coaching wins leaders
