Avalon Outside Linebacker Noah Taylor Commits To Virginia

Taylor, pictured here while visiting Virginia ~ Taylor's Twitter feed
Taylor, pictured here while visiting Virginia ~ Taylor’s Twitter feed

Outside linebacker prospect Noah Taylor announced Saturday that he has verbally committed to the University of Virginia. Taylor, a junior at Avalon High School in Gaithersburg, Maryland, becomes the first recruit to join the Cavaliers’ 2018 Class.

“Truly excited and blessed to say I have decided to verbally commit to the University of Virginia,” Taylor wrote in his tweet, which you can see by clicking here. Thanks to my mom, coach and teammates for always being there for me and helping me make the right decision. #GOHOOS”

Taylor, who plays a standup defensive end role at Avalon, is listed at 6’4″ and 180 or 190 pounds (depending on where you look). He is ranked a 3-star prospect by Rivals.com and 247Sports, and in addition to UVA he also received a scholarship offer from Pittsburgh. Duke, Maryland, Penn State, and Wake Forest have been expressing serious interest as well.

Stay tuned to The Sabre for more on this development soon. In the meantime, check below for Taylor’s sophomore season highlights as well as where we see him fitting into the UVA program.

The Sabre’s Take

From his highlights, Taylor is a prototypical fit as an outside linebacker in Bronco Mendenhall’s 3-4 defense. He appears to be a legit 6’4″. Though he is slender now (remember he has two years of high school left), he should be able to easily get up to 225 or 230 in college. His playmaking skills in space and closing speed are impressive.