Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 1980
- Class:
- 1975
William J. Taylor '75
Hometown: Richmond, VA
Sport: Football
Year Inducted: 1980
William J. Taylor '75 played a leading role in the renaissance of Brown football under Coach John Anderson in 1973 and 1974. The 6-0, 205-pounder came from Richmond, Va., and attended St Andrew's School in Boca Raton, Fla., where he earned 10 varsity letters in football, wrestling, and track. An outstanding linebacker during his freshman season at Brown, Taylor sat out a year with an injury and then returned as a defensive end under Anderson. One of the key victories for first-year coach Anderson in that 1973 season was the 17-7 upset of Cornell amid the snowflakes at Ithaca. The hard-hitting Taylor had seven solo tackles that day, intercepted a pass to set up a field goal, recovered two fumbles, and found himself named ECAC player of the week. "Undoubtedly the best game of my career," Taylor says, looking back seven years. There were other good games. As a senior, Bill Taylor was co-captain of the Bruins and was named to the first team All-Ivy, All-ECAC, and Associated Press All-East, along with honorable mention All-American. At the end of the 1974 season, Taylor won the Class of 1910 Football Trophy for having the highest grade average among the graduating seniors. Later, he received a NCAA Student-Athlete Scholarship for postgraduate study. "Bill Taylor was one of the best defensive ends I've ever coached, maybe the very best," Anderson says. "He was strong, had good leverage, loved to hit, and reacted quickly to the play. All the things you look for in a good end. There was something else. He was highly intelligent and seldom got fooled." Taylor is now an actuarial assistant with Phoenix Mutual Life Insurance Co. in Connecticut.
