MADISON- As many as 20 offers were presented to James Clemens offensive lineman Zac Taylor for his talents once graduating from the Class 7A football program, but once he made his decision he was totally committed to his choice of college. Taylor signed on National Early Signing Day with the UAB Blazers before family and friends in a ceremony held at James Clemens.

“Football is family to me and James Clemens has been like that since I’ve been here and when I visited UAB I felt the same feeling,” said Taylor. “I was excited to put my name on the paper for the signing.”

The 6-foot-5, 310-pound Taylor is a two-time All-State selection with the 2019 All-State Teams yet to be released. He competed in the 2019 Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Game as a starting lineman, but suffered a game-ending left ankle injury in Alabama’s first drive of the contest. He remained in the game until after Alabama scored a touchdown before bowing out for the remainder of the evening.

Taylor will graduate this month and enter classes at UAB in January where he will compete in spring drills with the Blazers, who were selected to play in the 2019 New Orleans Bowl versus Appalachian State. The Blazers participate in Conference USA and finished 9-4 on the season.

Taylor narrowed his colleges to include Florida Atlantic, Indiana and Southern Mississippi before deciding on UAB led by head coach Bill Clark who has been at the helm of the program since 2014 and has posted a 34-18 record. Clark had a lot of encouragement for Taylor in his decision, but the young student-athlete was swayed in his judgement by the way Clark was well thought of by many others.

“I noticed all of his assistant coaches either played with him (Piedmont High and Jacksonville State) or worked with him,” said Taylor. “They were all confident with him and I’d like to possibly become a coach and this is an atmosphere that will be good for me.”

UAB is scheduled to undergo new growth within the program including a new stadium and upscale facilities. Taylor said he was looking forward to the new upgraded program.

“A former teammate of mine at James Clemens, Austin McGhee (2019 graduate), is a walk-on for the Blazers and encouraged Taylor to make his decision to come to Birmingham. Austin told me UAB was a special place with a family feel about it, so I think I’ve made the correct decision,” added Taylor, son of Roger and Kim Taylor.

While in Montgomery to prepare for the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star contest, Taylor was presented the 2019 Bubba Trotman Service Above Self Award presented by the Montgomery Rotary Club. He was selected from the list of All-Star players for his community service with Special Olympics and help for those suffering from natural disasters.