Since missing his sophomore season of football because of poor grades, Lorenzo Taliaferro has adopted a business-first attitude that fueled an amazing rise.
To all-state football honors at Bruton High, junior college stardom at Lackawanna and Football Championship Subdivision All-American recognition at Coastal Carolina University. From academic ineligibility to associate’s degree to bachelor’s degree.
But not even Taliaferro could remain matter-of-fact when all of his success intersected Saturday. Not after receiving his diploma, then getting a call from the Baltimore Ravens that they had selected him in the fourth round of the NFL draft.
“No,” Taliaferro said, when asked Sunday night if he’d ever experienced a better day in his life than Saturday. “Two dreams coming true within two hours was one of the best moments of my life.”
The Ravens didn’t give him a lot of time to reflect. By Sunday morning, he was on a plane to Baltimore to work out in preparation for the team mini-camp that begins Thursday in Owings Mills, Md.
For a guy who’s all about business, that suits him just fine.
“I’m ready to work,” said Taliaferro, a running back who ran for 1,729 yards and 27 touchdowns in leading Myrtle Beach, S.C.-area Coastal Carolina to the FCS semifinals last fall.
He did reflect a little Sunday night on his selection by the Ravens, a team whose coaches and management he did not meet or work out for prior to the draft. Taliaferro, 6-foot, 230 pounds, thought he would get drafted but never imagined it would be in the fourth round.
“My agent (Joby Branion of Athletes First) knew I would get drafted, but didn’t know exactly when,” Taliaferro said. “That early was a surprise, so I felt shocked and in awe.”
The Ravens sound happy to get him. General manager Ozzie Newsome talked Saturday at the team’s draft news conference about getting a big running back who fits the (offensive) scheme, while director of college scouting Joe Hortiz raved bout Taliaferro’s versatility.
“He has very good hands out of the backfield,” Hortiz said of Taliaferro, who caught 23 passes for 123 yards and two touchdowns at Coastal Carolina this past season. “He’s really an outstanding pass protector.
“In terms of style, he’s probably more of a downhill style like Bernard (Pierce). Ray (Rice) is going to be a little more elusive. In terms of his hands, (Taliaferro) can get out there and catch with those guys. He’s a very physical runner. He’s a versatile player who can run the ball.”
That versatility should extend to producing on special teams. Taliaferro said on a post-draft conference call he believes that is one of the big reasons (along with pass protection ability) that he was drafted.
“If you can’t play special teams, then you can’t do anything, because that’s what you have to do to make a team in this league,” he said.
Taliaferro is excited to join forces with Pierce and Rice, whom he described Sunday as “a winner and a finisher.” And while it’s expected he’ll play behind them early in his career, Taliaferro plans to go about his business in Baltimore preparing for a big role early if necessary.
“It’s really exciting to go out there and compete with guys,” he said during the post-draft call. “I can’t wait to build a relationship with these guys, but at the end of the day it’s all about competing and doing the best you can do for the team.”
Concerning the possibility of a large early role, he added, “I would definitely be confident. It’s football. I’ve been doing it for a long time now.”
And those who were with him on the 2009 Group AA Division 3 state runner-up team at Bruton take pride in his success.
“This is a kid who stayed the course through tough circumstances, so I’m proud of him,” Bruton head coach Tracy Harrod said. “He never stopped believing over the course of a long road.”
Alex Powers, a 2009 teammate, said, “It touches every one of our hearts that he kept working through junior college and a small college (Coastal Carolina).
“He wasn’t just a teammate, he was a brother and it brings a tear to my eyes to see my best friend go the distance.”
Even as he readied for his first workout with a Ravens team barely 15 months removed from its Super Bowl victory, Taliaferro reflected fondly on the 2009 Bruton team he led to within three yards of a state title only two seasons after poor grades sidelined him. That group, which featured one of the smallest rosters from one of the smallest schools in state Group AA Division 3, was pivotal to his success.
” ‘Dirty 30’ for life,” he said, referring to the size of the roster and gritty playing style of the ’09 Panthers. “That squad was the definition of hardworking, undersized, determined players stepping up when the odds were against us: which was 100 percent of the time.
“I love all of my Dirty 30 teammates, and of course I wouldn’t have gotten far without them.”
O’Brien can be reached by phone at 757-247-4963.
