Snow College sophomore Connor Taylor has been named the 2017 NJCAA Defensive Player of the Year.
Taylor, a graduate of Davis High School, helped lead the Badgers to a 10-1 record in 2017 including a victory over Blinn College in the El Toro Bowl earlier this month.
A force on the defensive front, Taylor led the NJCAA with 139 tackles this season, including 75 solo stops. The Kaysville native tallied 21 tackles for a loss and three sacks while forcing four fumbles during his 2017 campaign.
For his efforts, Taylor was also named to the NJCAA All-America first team, joining teammates Leon Morgan (first team), Issac Fotu (second team) and D’Arman Notoa (honorable mention).
“Connor has been a game changing player and tremendous leader for our football team,” Snow College coach Paul Peterson said in a news release. “He was extremely productive, statistically. But more than that,Connor exemplifies, in all aspects, how a football player should be on and off the field.”
In 21 career games for the Badgers, the 6-foot-1, 235-pound linebacker accumulated 201 total tackles, including 30 for loss. Snow won 17 games during Taylor’s tenure that concluded with a No. 4 rank in the national polls following the 43-41 bowl victory over No. 10 Blinn.
“I feel very honored and grateful to receive this award,” Taylor said in the release. “To me, this award represents countless hours of work on and off the field. I want to thank my parents for all of their love and support. I could not have achieved any of this without them. I have loved playing football since I was a kid, and am grateful for the opportunity that Snow College has given me to keep playing these past two seasons. I want to thank my coaches — they did a phenomenal job this season and provided me and my teammates with the opportunity to push ourselves, believe in each other, and work hard to attain success.”
Taylor has received Division-I scholarship offers to continue his collegiate career, but has yet to make a decision about where he will play football next season.