North Carolina Central running back has career game in Orange Blossom Classic

North Carolina Central running back J’Mari Taylor rushed for a single touchdown last season.

On Sunday, Taylor surged into the end zone twice in the first half.

He capped a superb performance in the Orange Blossom Classic by catching a 14-yard touchdown pass from Walker Harris with 8:35 left.

Harris hit Taylor wide open in the end zone to secure the 31-24 win against Alabama State at Hard Rock Stadium.

“Walker just kept his eyes down the field and found me wide open,” Taylor said.

Taylor accounted for all 28 yards of the scoring drive, set up by Kamari Houze’s punt block.

The redshirt junior’s two rushing scores gave the Eagles a 14-0 lead, which later expanded to three touchdowns.

“It felt great. I give a big shoutout to the offensive coordinator, all the coaches, our o-line, the whole team actually for putting me in a good position to run the ball,” Taylor said. “We preached…to get the running game going to open up everything else.”

Taylor burst up the middle for a 1-yard touchdown on the game’s opening possession and straight ahead again for a 5-yard touchdown on NCCU’s next drive.

“We knew we had to run the ball tonight,” said North Carolina Central coach Trei Oliver. “Hats off to [assistant coach Cedric] Williams and our O-line. I thought our o-line did a great job. …J’Mari ran the ball decent, but it was all about the o-line.”

Taylor’s second touchdown came two plays after he raced left for 21 yards — his longest carry of the night.

“He’s a very versatile running back — agile, patient, physical,” said Alabama State linebacker Demarkus Cunningham. “He gave us tough angles to tackle.”

“We pride ourselves in stopping the run, but they were more physical,” ASU coach Eddie Robinson Jr. said.

The second touchdown came two plays after he raced left for 21 yards — his longest carry of the night.

By halftime, Taylor had 64 rushing yards on 11 carries. He topped his career high (73 yards) with a 10-yard gain in the third quarter, and he roared 17 yards on the next play.

Taylor ended the game with 24 carries for 128 yards. He rushed 73 times for 321 yards last season.

Quarterback shuffle

Robinson Jr. is known for having season-long position battles, especially at quarterback, where Dematrius Davis and Damon Stewart split time last season.

Sunday, the plan was to use Andrew Body (Texas Southern) and Jonah O’Brien (Eastern Illinois) under center, Robinson Jr. said. They alternated throughout the game Sunday.

“Both of them have a different type of skill set, so you feel it’s harder for the defense to adjust,” Robinson Jr. said. “But at the same time, they can run the same plays. … Both can make plays and move the ball down the field.”

Body, who started under center, had the better night of the two quarterbacks, rushing for a game-high 134 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries.

He scrambled up the middle for a 39-yard scoring run with 3:24 left and had a similar 38-yard sprint to the end zone in the second quarter. He also had a 48-yard burst negated by a holding penalty.

O’Brien completed a 45-yard pass to Joe Horn in the third quarter for the biggest gain of the game, but he was intercepted twice — DJ Estes stole his pass in the final minute with Alabama State driving for the tying score and Kole Jones got a pick-six in the second quarter.

O’Brien finished 5-for-11 passing for 61 yards. Body completed four of six throws for 27 yards.

Instant impact

Alabama State needed a big play after falling behind 21-0 on Jones’ 31-yard interception return, and A.J. Gates Jr. delivered immediately.

The 5-foot-10, 162-pound scatback caught the ensuing kickoff, charged ahead, cut right, and outraced several North Carolina Central players for an 82-yard touchdown return.

“The biggest thing for us was special teams,” Robinson Jr. said. “A.J. Gates is a very electric returner. He got us back into it.”

In high school, Gates Jr. returned a kickoff 91 yards for Gardendale (Alabama).

Eagles attack

North Carolina Central’s defense registered 11 tackles for loss. Nose guard Chris Smith and defensive end Juju Williams led the way with two apiece. They also combined for 3.5 of the team’s five sacks.

“We got a lot of pressure on their quarterback,” Oliver said.

Nine Eagles players were credited at least partially for a tackle behind the line of scrimmage.

Lightning delay

The game was suspended because of lightning after North Carolina Central kicked off the ball to start the second half. The delay lasted about 80 minutes.

This story was originally published September 1, 2024 at 8:33 PM.