Patience has been the driving force for North Carolina Central University running back J’Mari Taylor. Patience in the backfield propelled Taylor to a career high in rushing yards in his senior season, and it also gave him the endurance to work his way up from being a third-string walk-on to becoming one of the top running backs in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.
Taylor is one of only two running backs at Division I historically Black colleges to rush for 1,000 yards this season, along with Jaden Sutton of Delaware State University. In 10 games, Taylor has 1,068 rushing yards and leads the conference with 14 touchdowns. He is the first North Carolina Central running back to rush for 1,000 yards in a season since Greg Pruitt Jr., who rushed for consecutive 1,000-yard seasons in 2004 and 2005.
As the Eagles (7-3 overall, 3-1 MEAC) prepare to play in their regular-season finale against Delaware State (1-10 overall, 0-4 MEAC) on Saturday, Taylor and his team will have to wait for the FCS Playoff committee to determine whether North Carolina Central will earn an FCS playoff bid for the second consecutive season.
“Conference play is tough. It always [is] in MEAC, and it’s a lot of adversity,” Taylor said. “Everybody wants to go to the Celebration Bowl, but [going to the FCS playoff] is not as bad as what people make it seem. Going to the FCS playoffs, you can eventually become FCS champion. So that’s another one of our goals.”
During the Eagles’ 26-3 win Nov. 16 over Howard University, Taylor rushed for a season-high 206 yards and three touchdowns. North Carolina Central football coach Trei Oliver knows Taylor’s development has been crucial to the Eagles’ offense.
“His patience and acceleration is one that kind of sets him apart. Early on he was kind of pressing a little bit and trying to hit a home run every play,” Oliver said. “But he had to learn how to just be patient. Let the O-line carry out your blocks, and then from there you can go ahead and hit it. Once you start doing that with more patience, then he is fast and accelerating through the holes.”
While he’s thankful for his growth, Taylor remembers when opportunities weren’t as plentiful.
When Taylor arrived in Durham, North Carolina, to begin his college career in 2020, he was a walk-on and scout team player for the Eagles. Although the coronavirus pandemic canceled his first season, Taylor spent most of his time simulating opposing offenses and defenses to prepare the Eagles for weekly matchups.
He played in four games in 2021, effectively redshirting the season. Being a walk-on didn’t bother Taylor. He was confident in his football abilities.
“You gotta remain humble,” Taylor said. “Everybody wants to play as a freshman. It’s guys that’s ahead of you, that’s older than you that understand the level of play [and] competition in college football. You just don’t want to go out there with no knowledge of how college football is played. You can think you’re ready, but you’re really not.”
While most younger players aren’t eager to play on scout teams, it allowed Taylor to see different defensive and offensive formations.
Oliver believes the scout team is a good development opportunity for younger players.
“[Scout team players] don’t ever get any credit or any love, but they’re the guys that have to get that No. 1 defense or No. 1 offense ready to play,” Oliver said.
While on the scout team, Taylor was sitting behind running backs such as Isaiah Totten and Latrell “Mookie” Collier. While some players would transfer after two seasons of little playing time, Taylor didn’t like the unknown of entering the transfer portal and potentially not getting picked up by another school. Instead, he observed the upperclassmen on the team, watching how they prepared for practice and game day.
In 2022, North Carolina Central won the Celebration Bowl. That season, Taylor got consistent reps as the team No. 2 running back behind Collier, rushing for 415 yards and seven touchdowns and earning a scholarship. Last season, Taylor rushed for 321 yards and one touchdown.
Like Taylor, Collier also had to work his way up the depth chart. He isn’t surprised what Taylor has been able to accomplish this year.
“This was something that he was consistently doing, making plays. Whether that was running the ball [or] catching the ball, you could tell that he was something special,” Collier said. “Now watching everything that J’Mari has done, from coming in … being in the weight room, working hard on the field, being on scout team, special teams, as well to now, this is his time, his year.”
As a senior this season, Taylor has become more of a vocal leader for the running back position group, helping the players get adjusted to collegiate football.
“[I tell them] don’t rush the process and everything, because you don’t want to be too quick on things, and then you’re not ready,” Taylor said. “[The seniors] helped me a lot. It was just the bond, the brotherhood in that room. It’s a bunch of young guys in that room, but helping them, it’s like, this is how people were teaching me and I can do the same and give them information for them to be great.”
As conference play wraps up, Taylor and the Eagles are looking forward to continuing their streak of postseason play after spending the last two seasons either in the Celebration Bowl or FCS playoffs.
“We got a lot of guys that have played in the FCS playoffs, so they know the mindset and what we have to do,” Taylor said. “This year, it’d be different, because we’re not trying to be one and done at the first round. We’re trying to make it farther.”