Rutgers commit Jonathan Taylor's coach: 'He's good for turning 3 yards into 10'

According to Salem (N.J.) head coach Montrey Wright, Rutgers is getting physical downhill runner with speed in class of 2017 commitment Jonathan Taylor. And who would know better than Wright, who approves the weekly game plans Taylor executes to success.

"He's always looking to make things happen," Wright told NJ.com. "He's real strong going downhill and he's good for turning three yards into 10, which is pretty impressive for us because he continues to move his feet. And he's real physical. He runs with an attitude.

"I would say he's more like a one cut and go guy."

On top of that, Wright says Taylor is just as good of a kid.

"He works hard, obviously. He is very coach-able," said Wright. "And another thing is he's a leader. He's like another coach on the field for us which is pretty good. Everything we tell him to do, he does it. He does everything we ask."

"He's a smart kid. He's in one of the best academic programs around. He's got a 3.6 GPA (grade point average) so he's a high academic kid, real intelligent personality-wise. He's a good kid off the field. He's one of those kids always doing the right thing. I can say a lot of things about Jonathan and people wouldn't believe them because he's that good of a kid."

Despite not being asked to to do much blocking up to this point in his career, Taylor will get the opportunity to hone his skills in 2016, in his team's new version of the spread attack.

"When Jonathan runs the ball, the other guys Iso for him. That's how we did it last year," said Wright. "But this year, with him and Jones being in the backfield together, they are gonna be blocking for each other. So we're looking for him to do a lot more of that, too."

Taylor showed during The Opening N.J. Regional his ability to catch the football and make plays on the outside, something most analysts were aware of.

"He can catch the ball pretty well out the backfield," said Wright. "A lot of people haven't seen Jonathan do it because he's a more of a downhill guy who runs. But if we have to throw the ball to him, he's more than willing to go get it."

When asked of the areas which Taylor must improve as he ascends to college, Wright didn't reveal many.

"I would say becoming more vocal would be one thing for him and continue to be that guy to take over," he said.

In 2015, Taylor accumulated 1,383 rushing yards and 11 rushing TDs on 192 carries (138.3 yards per game).

A three-star recruit, Taylor selected Rutgers over offers from Boston College, Temple and a number of Ivy League schools. And he recently added an offer from Virginia Tech.

Todderick Hunt may be reached at thunt@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TodderickHunt. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.

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