Hall of Fame DE Jason Taylor expected for Canes off-field role. UM staff could be complete
Multiple sources confirmed to the Miami Herald on Thursday that NFL Pro Football Hall of Fame member and Miami Dolphins defensive end great Jason Taylor is expected to join the University of Miami in an off-field role.
One source told the Miami Herald he is expected to work as a pass-rush specialist, which makes sense given Taylor is seventh on the NFL’s all-time sack list with 139.5.
Also later Thursday, FootballScoop.com reported through sources that University of Texas-San Antonio co-defensive coordinator/defensive line coach Rod Wright is “finalizing a deal” with UM to join the staff working as a defensive line assistant specializing in defensive ends/”pass rush specialization.’’ The Hurricanes’ defensive line coach is Joe Salave’a, with the defensive coordinator Kevin Steele, linebackers coach Charlie Strong and secondary coach Jahmile Addae.
Wright, 37, played defensive end for Texas and was selected by the Dolphins in the seventh round of the 2006 draft and played for Miami from 2006-08.
Wright’s UTSA Roadrunners finished 12-2 last season and won the C-USA title game against Western Kentucky.
If Wright, known as a strong recruiter, joins the staff and current tight ends coach Stephen Field is retained, Miami’s 10 on-field assistant coaching staff will have been completed.
Spring practice begins Monday.
On Thursday, Miami Hurricanes legendary quarterback Bernie Kosar was seen in a Twitter photo with Taylor inside UM’s Carol Soffer Indoor Practice Facility. “G morning with the great Jason Taylor,’’ Kosar posted on Twitter, with a football emoji and #UMatter accompanying it.
Taylor, 47, spent the past five years at Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas, first as a defensive line coach and the past two seasons as the defensive coordinator. He also worked Dolphins preseason games on television and regular-season games on radio.
Taylor was a six-time Pro Bowl selection and four-time All-Pro. He was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2006 and earned the 2007 Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2017, his first year of eligibility.
The Herald reported last week that Taylor had been in discussions with UM coach Mario Cristobal about joining the staff. InsidetheU of the 247Sports network was the first to report the latest news.
Taylor, whose infant son was born in late August, also has a son Isaiah, who is a safety for Arizona; and a son Mason, a tight end who committed to LSU this year.
This story was originally published March 3, 2022 at 3:19 PM.
