Taylor University's football roster is set to receive a dose of NFL lineage as Ryan McCown, a promising freshman quarterback, joins the team. McCown hails from Jacksonville High School in Jacksonville, Texas, where his father Randy McCown also excelled during his alma mater years.
Randy McCown went on to Texas A&M to be a successful 2nd string quarterback with the highlight of his college career being leading the Aggies to an Alamo Bowl appearance in 1999.
Ryan is the nephew of notable journeymen NFL Quarterbacks Josh and Luke McCown. Josh had the longest tenured playing career, playing for 18 years with 13 different teams. Luke played for 13 years with seven organizations.
At Jacksonville High School, Ryan was a multi-sport athlete playing both varsity basketball and football. His senior football season is where McCown built his notoriety posting large numbers not only through the air but on the ground as well. Having accumulated 2,304 passing yards, 27 touchdowns with 207 rushing yards on the season. His 94.3 QB rating was a career best and a significant improvement from the years before.
McCown will join a young and crowded quarterback room making a total of six on the roster; five are going into their second year. Freshman Quarterback Hunter Schichtel is in the room and on the field alongside McCown. The playstyle of McCown meshes well with his teammates being a big arm dual threat player because all six guys have exceptional speed and will run out of the pocket to make a play. With four quarterbacks returning, McCown and Schichtel will be exposed to the players' experiences of Taylor football and how to not only grow as a player but also as people.
The Trojans are looking to build on their momentum and new found culture that was built during Head Coach Aaron Mingo’s first year, winning two more games compared to 2021, going 5-6 in 2022.
The schedule has a challenging start, putting the team on the road for three straight games after week one. Taylor is matched up against two division one schools —Butler University and Dayton University — in back to back weekends.
