Kelvin Taylor follows path of NFL father Fred Taylor

Kelvin Taylor has been a big star since the day he was born. Only the stage has changed over the years.

"He was 10 pounds, 2 ounces (when he was born) and he looked like he was two months old already," according to his mother, Tiffany Campbell-McGrew. "People on that wing and nurses all came to see the skinny little lady who had a 10-pound baby. He was popular from the start."

Tiffany, age 17 at the time, had been a cheerleader at Glades Central (Belle Glade, Fla.). The father was popular Central football star Fred Taylor, who later became one of the NFL's premier running backs. They never married, but Fred Taylor, who now has a stable of sons ages 8, 5 and 2, has remained close to Kelvin.

Today Kelvin is a powerful 5-foot-11, 209-pound rising junior running back at Glades Day (Belle Glade, Fla.), a private school. A starter since eighth grade, he already has broken Florida records with 50 touchdowns in a season and 116 in a career.



He also is within 963 yards of the Florida career rushing record held by former NFL great Emmitt Smith, within 4,111 yards of the coveted national career rushing record held by Ken Hall and within 88 touchdowns of the national career record held by Michael Hart.

Breaking it down, he has rushed 826 times for 7,121 yards and 114 touchdowns. He also has scored twice on pass receptions.

The highly athletic teenager runs 40 yards in a swift 4.5 seconds, can bench press 315 pounds and has a vertical jump of 37 inches. The Belle Glade legend – that local athletes get their speed from catching jackrabbits – doesn't apply to Kelvin, who swears he never even chased one.

Kelvin's running style in amazingly close to his father, who starred for the Jacksonville Jaguars and most recently played for the New England Patriots.

"I do run just like my father," Kelvin agreed. "It's just natural. I've watched a lot of video of him and I see him play five or six times each year. He taught me about defensive formations, to trust your vision. He's a great person to talk to about football. I'm blessed to have a father in the NFL.

"A little crack – that's all I need. I don't need a big hole. Just a little burst and I'm gone. I break a lot of tackles, but I like to make people miss a lot, too. I love when they stack nine men (up front). No defense bothers me. Every play I touch the ball I try to score."



Kelvin honors his father by wearing his uniform number (21). Though their style is similar, Fred says that his son is more talented in most areas, except he is not quite as quick.

"At that age, I was nothing like him," Fred said. "His jump cut is way better, the way he accelerates. I made a lot of mistakes (off the field). I tell him to enjoy your youth."

The elder Taylor is extremely impressed with his son's work ethic. He noted, "He works extremely hard. His work habits are way ahead of me at his age. I never really wanted to push (football). If he was receptive, we'd run for it. He was receptive. I'm not surprised he is playing as well as he is."

Part of that work ethic is running the hills surrounding Lake Okeechobee, something he has been doing tirelessly since age 11. It's a tradition that was followed by his father and those before him. He also runs track, adding speed to his power.

Running around the lake isn't hard, but he has to be constantly aware of an alligator possibly crossing his path.
The result of all that running is why Palm Beach Post sports writer Jeff Greer says, "He has two tree trunks for legs. He's so powerful. What makes him so highly touted is that he's not only built, but he's very elusive. When games are more important, he gets better and better. That's part of his mystique."

According to his mother, Kelvin was a natural when it came to football. She recalled, "All he wanted was a football. He was able to catch a football when he was 2 years old. Everybody used to be amazed. He works at it hard. Football is his life."



At age 7, he started organized football, always with older players because of his size. He was in great demand as soon as coaches found out that Fred was his father.

His uncle, Jerry Campbell, quarterbacked Glades Central to a state title in 1998 and helped Kelvin with his early development. He learned early discipline, because his uncle would throw the 7-year-old passes and every time he dropped one he had to do 15 or 20 pushups.

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Continue reading{PAGEBREAK} When Kelvin chose Glades Day - instead of his father's alma mater – coach Pete Walker was ecstatic, though he still had no idea how great the youngster would become. Walker recalled, "When I laid eyes on him, he looked like a senior physically. We never had an eighth grader play varsity. I figured out the first couple weeks that he was ready. He was going to be a backup to a senior tailback, but (the senior) blew his knee out in the first game.

"He (Kelvin) rushed for over 100 yards (103 yards and three touchdowns) and you could see that he was going to be special. We were playing a power, Chaminade-Madonna (Hollywood, Fla.), and he kind of made them look silly (Glades Day won 28-3)."

By the end of the year, he had rushed for 1,692 yards and 27 touchdowns and became only the second eighth grader in Florida history to make first-team all-state. He quickly added to his legend by scoring a state-record 50 touchdowns the next year and earning the MaxPreps National Freshman of the Year award.



He rushed for 213 yards and four touchdowns as the Gators defeated Warner Christian (South Daytona, Fla.), 27-20, in overtime for the Class 1B state championship. He carried two defenders with him as he bulled his way into the end zone with the winning touchdown.

"I was just trying to run hard on every play," he said. "I was just blessed from God. I worked hard in practice. I don't take any snaps off. On Friday it's easy."

Kelvin got off to a slow start as a sophomore because he was coming off surgery for a knee injury. However, when the state playoffs got underway, he again was dominant, and he earned a first-team spot on the U.S. Air Force Sophomore All-American team and a second-team spot on the U.S. Air Force Small Schools All-American Team.

Walker won't soon forget the regional finals against tough Jupiter Christian (Fla.), which had routed the Gators, 38-14, to start the season. The Gators trailed with 1:37 left when Taylor told one of the assistant coaches, "Hey, I'm going to go for 76."

He did it on the next play and the Gators went home with an amazing 35-29 victory. He finished with five touchdowns and a playoff-record 437 yards.

"That's a legendary thing," Walker understated.



Taylor said humbly, "I just knew it was a big game. I can do anything with my faith in God. I wasn't nervous that we were going to lose that game. That felt great, but that wasn't my mission. My mission was to win the state. After that night, it was over and back to business."

That business culminated in a 42-35 victory over Warner Christian for Glades Day's second consecutive state title. All Kelvin did was run for 248 yards and five touchdowns on a state finals-record 44 carries.

"That's when my team needs me most," he said. "That's when I try my best. I love being competitive. I compete hard in everything, even in video games against my little sister (13-year-old Goldiyah)."

Greer won't soon forget Kelvin's dominant performance in the state-title game.

"I've covered a lot of high school football," he stressed. "I've never seen a performance like that. After the game he was surrounded (by fans and media). He had a cut on his nose, grass stains. He's a very tough kid. He looked like he was all beaten up."

It was the picture of a true warrior who had overcome his wounds to win the war.



Greer addressed the fact that Glades Day plays in the state's second-smallest class.

"He has his fair share of critics," Greer conceded. "But every game I saw didn't matter who he was playing. He was just unbelievable. You can tell if a kid can play. It's pretty obvious that Kelvin Taylor can play."

Kelvin answers critics with this comment: "Every year we play against bigger schools (during the regular season). I really don't look at it that way."

The humble teenager is the first one to credit the offensive line for his staggering statistics.

"It's the most important thing on the field," Kelvin said. "Without them, the team doesn't go. That's what got my career going to where it is now. God just blessed me with a good offensive line."

The only team to have much success against Kelvin was King's Academy (West Palm Beach, Fla.), a bigger school that held him to very low yardage and one touchdown during a 42-21 victory.



"They have very good linebackers and a great coaching staff," Kelvin acknowledged. "They did a good job against me."

It's rather mind-boggling to project how many records Kelvin may be able to establish over the next two years.

"I'm just going to play my game and let it come to me," he says. "I don't care if I just run for 50 yards as long as we win. My goal is to stay healthy and win games."

With possible national records on the horizon and so much publicity already surrounding him, Kelvin is handling all the pressure with great maturity.

He says, "I like it. I don't feel pressure at all. I'll just go out there and play my game. I'll be humble. It's part of the game that I signed up for."

Walker is extremely impressed by Kelvin's mature approach to everything. He noted, "We knew he was going to be a great athlete. A lot of people today can't handle that type of thing. It's how grounded and team-oriented he is."



He would love to have a career like his idol, Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson.

"I watch film on him and my father," Kelvin noted. "He's the best running back in the game today. I think he is going to be the best running back ever if he stays healthy. He's explosive, powerful, fast, can catch the ball out of the backfield, can cut – he can do it all."

Entering his junior year, Kelvin is a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and carries a 2.8 GPA. Math is his favorite subject. He's already on the list of every major college in the country and the NFL is his dream. He says he will choose a school where he can find the best education and a team that runs a pro-style offense.

Currently, he revealed, he likes Alabama and his father's alma mater, Florida.

Kelvin's mother doesn't know how many colleges have sent information to him, but she did point out, "He has really big boxes of stuff already. His whole room has pamphlets all around the wall – like wallpaper. He doesn't need wallpaper or paint. He's got pamphlets."

She has great confidence in his future decision about college and beyond.



"He's a wonderful kid," she said proudly. "He never gave me any problems. He says I'm his best friend."

Fred's also confident in his son's future.

He believes, "His future is as big as God wants it to be – as long as he stays healthy and humble."