If you’re looking for Jonathan Taylor during spring practice, chances are you will find him near the end zone with head coach Paul Chryst. This spring, the sophomore running back who broke the FBS freshman rushing record with 1,977 yards in 2017 is working to become a more complete player.
“There’s a lot of things he thinks he can get better at and we think he can get better at,” Chryst said. “There’s not one guy on this team that can’t get better, and J.T. is one of them.”
After such an impressive and dominant freshman season, it might be hard for fans to see exactly where he has room to improve. For Taylor, however, it’s pretty easy.
“It’s definitely clear when you sit down, watch the film and break it down,” Taylor said. “A lot of people just look at the touchdown runs, and even on the touchdown runs, sometimes I missed a landmark. There’s definitely certain rules that you have to follow and certain criteria, so when you see a touchdown, you really have to break down the film to see if that was where I was supposed to make the read or not.”
Specifically, Taylor wants to improve his pass-catching. Despite his gaudy rushing numbers, Taylor totaled just eight catches for 95 yards and no touchdowns in 2017. In third down passing situations, Taylor often came off the field for Rachid Ibrahim, who was more adept at catching the ball out of the backfield. In 2018, Taylor hopes to prove to his coaches and teammates that he can contribute in those situations.
“I want to put that on film and have defenses respect that,” Taylor said. “I feel that if defenses respect that, it will open up a lot more for our offense. That’s the overall thing, opening up the offense so we can get over that hump.”
During spring practices, Chryst pulls Taylor aside individually for roughly 30 minutes to work on his pass-catching. Taylor practices both routes out of the backfield and running routes lined up as a wide receiver. Taylor has also taken lessons from sophomore running back Garrett Groshek and senior running back Chris James, despite the fact that he caught more balls than them in last season.
It doesn’t just end with pass catching for Taylor, though. The sophomore also has other areas of his game he is working to improve.
“Definitely consistency. Hitting landmarks. Making sure I understand where the block is at, knowing where the reads are going to be, building my overall confidence and trying to become a better overall football player.”
Taylor’s biggest Achilles’ heel in 2017 was holding onto the ball, as he fumbled eight times, losing six. Taylor has been working all spring to eliminate that from his game.
“I’m doing extra work in between reps, [working on] keeping it high and tight,” Taylor said. “It’s really great incorporating it inside your work. You can do things after practice, but one of the best things you can do is actually incorporating it during your reps — making sure that everything is where it’s supposed to be and always being aware of it.”
Many fans are starting to wonder where Taylor’s ceiling is after so much success at a young age. Taylor, though, doesn’t see any ceiling.
“The limit is really wherever you set it at,” Taylor said. “You can keep working and getting better every day. Whenever someone talks about a limit for anybody, I feel like the sky's the limit for anybody, as long as you’re willing to work and get better.”
After finishing sixth on the Heisman Award balloting in 2017, there are a lot of expectations for Taylor to win the award in 2018. Taylor, however, has just one goal: a national championship.
