Since Trae Taylor first walked through Carmel’s halls in 2023, it has been known that he’s a coveted football recruit.
That identity changed Thursday afternoon when the 6-foot-3, 190-pound sophomore quarterback announced he had committed to Nebraska.
“I’ll wake up tomorrow and go through my normal routine,” Trae Taylor said. “Before, I was known as the kid who was being recruited, and maybe now I’ll be known as the kid who’s committed to Nebraska. I imagine it’ll be a little easier because no one will be wondering where I’m going.”
Trae Taylor, who passed for 3,061 yards and 20 touchdowns in his first season as a starter for the Corsairs (4-7), chose the Cornhuskers over a who’s who of college football powers, including three other finalists — Illinois, LSU and Texas A&M — as well as reigning national champion Ohio State.
He most recently was on Nebraska’s campus last weekend and privately committed to the Big Ten program at the time. The Cornhuskers (7-6) beat Boston College 20-15 in the Pinstripe Bowl in December.
In the typical recruiting cycle, Trae Taylor’s announcement is on the early side. But he said that after making about 70 campus visits since middle school, he believed the time was right.
“Once I knew where I wanted to go, I figured there wasn’t any reason to wait any longer this year or until next year,” he said. “It will be nice to not have to plan any more trips.”
Throughout the recruiting process, Trae Taylor was given the latitude to formulate opinions of schools on his own, with the understanding that his parents, J.R. and Hilary, were always available as sounding boards. J.R. Taylor was a standout running back at Eastern Illinois from 1999 to 2002 and was inducted into its Athletics Hall of Fame in 2017.
“It could be ‘this campus feels too big’, or ‘this school doesn’t have my degree,’” J.R. Taylor said.
Prominent in Trae Taylor’s mind were the relationships he developed with coaches. He cited the extreme comfort he felt with Nebraska coach Matt Rhule, co-offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Glenn Thomas and running backs coach EJ Barthel, and ticked off a few other key considerations.
“I feel confident that this staff and program will get me the most NFL-ready,” Trae Taylor said. “No. 2, how I’ll develop on and off the field as a person, and someplace I can focus on football and school.”
Going full throttle in the recruiting process was a conscious decision by Trae Taylor and his family, and that also gave a huge advantage to college coaches who were involved with him early. It became a hill too steep to climb for late comers, even national powers like Alabama and Georgia.
“They came in so late, and Trae didn’t feel like they could ever catch up relationship-wise to some schools who had been with him for years,” J.R. Taylor said. “We went everywhere, and that allowed him to see everything and allowed him to make his decision and be comfortable with it.”
J.R. Taylor said Trae wasn’t privy to any discussions about NIL money.
“He was never involved in the money talks,” J.R. Taylor said. “Our big thing was, literally, ‘Let mom and I do all of that stuff, and you find your ideal school.’”
To that end, the first time Trae Taylor met with Nebraska football general manager Pat Stewart was on his final visit, coming after he had already committed to the program.
Further underscoring the family’s approach is J.R. Taylor’s disclosure that Nebraska’s financial offer was not the highest.
“I learned how to not fall in love with the recruitment process,” Trae Taylor said. “Nebraska football is the biggest thing in the state. Every time I was there, it was an awesome environment.”
Making an early decision is a relief, but the timing likely will expose Trae Taylor to inevitable questions about whether his commitment will stick. He knows how quickly things can change on the college football landscape.
“Two years is still a long time, and any of the coaches could leave at any time,” he said. “I’ll talk to coaches as much as they want to talk, but I won’t take any visits. When I commit, I’m really committed. I don’t see any school flipping me.”
Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter.
