.png&width=32&height=32&type=webp)
The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels' Taylor Has Corner On Versatility
8/2/2001 | Football
Aug. 2, 2001
DOUG SEGREST
Birmingham News staff writer
Syniker Taylor is a problem player.
A problem for Ole Miss opponents. A problem for an Ole Miss coaching staff trying to decide where best to play him.
"He's just a football player," Rebels coach David Cutcliffe said Wednesday at SEC Kickoff 2001. "When he's healthy, he can play corner, safety, linebacker or receiver. He's a playmaker."
After a 2000 in which he endured a series of nagging injuries, Taylor underwent offseason surgery to clean up debris in his knee. He's now rarin' to go as a senior who made The Birmingham News' preseason All-SEC team and may be the Southeastern Conference's most versatile athlete.
Just one question.
Where will he play?
"At corner," Taylor said. "I just like corner. They'll call certain defenses (in the huddle) and I just say, `No, let's play man.'"
He has Deion Sanders' confidence without the pose or the posse. And why shouldn't he?
As a junior, the Gulfport native started 11 games at strong safety and moved to free safety for the Music City Bowl. Unlike the Neon One, he likes to hit witness 67 tackles in 2000. Add to that three picks that brought his career total to seven.
That's not versatile enough? Taylor has one career catch at Ole Miss. It covered 78 yards. He's even contributed to Ole Miss' success on the basketball court.
In making the move to cornerback, he's picked up an ally in new Rebels defensive coordinator Don Lindsey.
Lindsey likes unpredictability, buoyed by constant man-to-man coverage.
"He doesn't call nothing soft," Taylor said. "I like that."
