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Virginia Signs NC Central Running Back Transfer J'Mari Taylor

Matt Newton

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Virginia reinforced its running back unit with an addition from the transfer portal, as North Carolina Central running back transfer J'Mari Taylor signed with the Cavaliers, as announced by UVA football on Wednesday morning.

A 5'11", 200-pound running back from Charlotte, North Carolina, Taylor entered the transfer portal as a grad transfer after a productive four years at NC Central. In 38 total games played, Taylor racked up more than 2,500 yards from scrimmage and 32 total touchdowns. He rushed for 1,882 yards over the last three seasons, averaging 5.3 yards per carry and totaling 23 rushing touchdowns.

As a senior in 2024, Taylor had his best season yet, recording 1,146 rushing yards and 15 rushing touchdowns on 196 carries. He averaged 5.8 yards per carry and 104.2 rushing yards per game. Taylor also proved to be a threat in the passing game, catching 30 passes for 271 yards and two receiving touchdowns.

In Taylor's three seasons getting reps as a running back, NC Central went 10-2 in 2022 with a win over Jackson State in the Cricket Celebration Bowl and Taylor had a rushing touchdown in that game, then 9-3 in 2023 and earned a bid to the FCS Championship Playoffs, and then 8-3 in 2024 with Taylor as the team's lead running back.

Taylor led the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in rushing touchdowns and rushing yards per game this season. He earned a First-Team All-MEAC selection, was a two-time MEAC Offensive Player of the Week, and a finalist for the Walter Payton Award, presented to the best offensive player in FCS football. Taylor comes to UVA with one year of eligibility remaining.

To say Virginia has struggled running the football recently would be putting it mildly. The Cavaliers haven't had a 1,000-yard rusher from the running back position since Jordan Ellis in 2018. After Ellis left, UVA went four seasons in a row with a quarterback as the team's leading rusher. Virginia hadn't had a running back record even 400 net rushing yards since 2019 until both Kobe Pace (499 yards) and Xavier Brown (488 yards) surpassed that mark this season.

Pace has exhausted his eligibility and both he and Brown missed the regular season finale against Virginia Tech with injuries, leaving sophomore Noah Vaughn and wide receiver Chris Tyree as the team's main running backs for that game. Brown is a dynamic runner and will likely be the team's lead running back next season, but he has dealt with significant injuries in his three years at Virginia thus far. The addition of J'Mari Taylor will give the Cavaliers much-needed depth, but more importantly, an experienced runner who is coming off of a 1,000+ rushing yard season and who can potentially provide the spark needed to get UVA's ground game going. Of course, it's pivotal that Virginia pairs Xavier Brown and J'Mari Taylor with a much more effective offensive line than the Cavaliers have had in the last few seasons.

J'Mari Taylor is the sixth player to transfer to Virginia this offseason, joining Nebraska quarterback Daniel Kaelin, Louisville defensive back Devin Neal, Morgan State defensive back Ja'son Prevard, Fresno State defensive tackle Jacob Holmes, and North Texas quarterback Chandler Morris.

Keep track of all of UVA's transfer portal activity, including outgoing and incoming transfers, here: Virginia Football Transfer Portal Tracker

Stay up to date on all of the transfers who have received offers from Virginia or who have scheduled visits to UVA here: Tracking UVA Football's Offers and Visits in the Transfer Portal

More Virginia Football News

UVA Football: Wide Receiver Malachi Fields Enters Transfer Portal


Potential Landing Spots for Former UVA QB Anthony Colandrea

Virginia Gets Commitment From North Texas Transfer QB Chandler Morris

Louisville Defensive Back Transfer Devin Neal Commits to Virginia

Virginia Football Lands Nebraska Quarterback Transfer Daniel Kaelin

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Matt Newton
MATT NEWTON

Matt launched Virginia Cavaliers On SI in August of 2021 and has since served as the site's publisher and managing editor, covering all 23 NCAA Division I sports teams at the University of Virginia. He is from Downingtown, Pennsylvania and graduated from UVA in May of 2021.