Lance Taylor

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Lance Taylor joined the Stanford program in 2014 as the Cardinal’s running backs coach. The 2016 season is his third on The Farm.
 
Taylor, the 2015 FootballScoop.com Running Backs Coach of the Year, was instrumental in the breakout season of AP Player of the Year and Heisman Trophy finalist Christian McCaffrey. McCaffrey set the school record for single-game rushing yards (243) against UCLA and became the first Cardinal to eclipse the 2,000-yard rushing mark in a season (2,019). He was second among all FBS backs in rushing yards.
 
McCaffrey had 11 100-yard rushing outputs and a school-record nine-straight such performances. He combined with quarterback Kevin Hogan to comprise the program’s best-ever rushing tandem (2,355). McCaffrey’s 144.2 rushing yards/game ranked third nationally.
 
Remound Wright notched 13 rushing scores during his fifth-year senior campaign, seventh-most in school history. Wright finished his career with 26 rushing touchdowns, good for sixth-best by a Cardinal back.
 
Stanford’s rushing offense averaged 223.7 yards/game, 19th-best nationally and second among Pac-12 programs.
 
In 2014, Stanford averaged 158.8 yards/game on the ground. The Cardinal rushed for at least 100 yards in 11 of 13 games on the season, and Stanford finished with at least 200 yards on the ground in each of its last three games -- all Cardinal victories.
 
Wright led Stanford with 601 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns. Wright ran for nine of his 11 scores in the final three games of the season, which included a Big Game record-tying four-touchdown performance against Cal.
 
Taylor came to Stanford from the Carolina Panthers, where he spent the 2013 season as assistant wide receivers coach, working directly with Ricky Proehl.
 
Prior to his time at Carolina, Taylor spent three seasons with the New York Jets from 2010-12, serving as a coaching intern in 2010, offensive quality control coach in 2011 and assistant tight ends/quality control coach in 2012. During Taylor’s time with the Jets’ tight ends, Jeff Cumberland (29) and Dustin Keller (28) ranked second and third on the team, respectively, in receptions.
 
Before his stint in the NFL, Taylor coached wide receivers at Appalachian State in 2009. Under his tutelage, the Mountaineers set school records with 284 receptions and 3,621 receiving yards. The team finished 11-3, won the Southern Conference title and advanced to the Football Championship Subdivision semifinals.
 
He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant for Nick Saban at his alma mater, Alabama, from 2007-08.
 
A walk-on at Alabama before earning a scholarship, Taylor played in 38 consecutive games at wide receiver from 1999-2003 for the Crimson Tide. As a senior, he served as a special teams captain for (then) coach Mike Shula.
 
Taylor played professionally for the Colorado Crush and Columbus Destroyers of the Arena Football League, and af2’s Green Bay Blizzard and Louisville Fire from 2004-06.
 
Taylor graduated from Alabama in 2003 with a degree in management. Taylor's father, James, also attended Alabama and was a member of the school's 1973 national championship team as a running back under legendary head coach Paul "Bear" Bryant.
 
Married to the former Jamie Ravenna, the couple resides in Palo Alto with their son, Jameson “Jet” Edward Taylor. 
 

Recruiting Areas
Alabama, California (Los Angeles County, San Fernando Valley, South Bay, West Side), Florida (South), North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee