Notre Dame football: The 5 best to play on the offensive line
Aaron Taylor is now known for his time in the booth for CBS Sports. When he played under Lou Holtz, however, he was the best lineman in the country. An overwhelming run blocker, Taylor was the perfect fit for Holtz’s power run offense.
During his time with Notre Dame, Taylor’s excellence did not go unnoticed. A two-time consensus All-American, Aaron Taylor was the best offensive lineman of the early 1990s. 1993 was the year that all of Taylor’s success culminated, and to go along with his second All-American selection he was awarded Lombardi Award.
In 1993, Taylor was further awarded the Jim Parker Award. The Parker Award was given to the nation’s top offensive lineman from 1991 until 2018. A captain, Taylor was also a finalist for the Outland Trophy in that 1993 season.
From 1990 until 1993 Taylor cleared the way for some of the great backs in Notre Dame history, like Jerome Bettis and Reggie Brooks. He also protected Rick Mirer at quarterback. The key cog in one of the great offensive lines in Notre Dame history, without Aaron Taylor the attitude and personality of those great Lou Holtz teams would have been worlds different.
He understood that he was just one piece in the puzzle of a great offensive line while at Notre Dame. That pride in being part of a group effort helped him to be the best possible offensive lineman. Taylor’s love for the offensive line unit is so prevalent that he actually founded the Joe Moore Award as an honor to the Nation’s top offensive line unit.
Though never apart of a National Championship team, Taylor was on the Notre Dame team which did all but finish the job in his outstanding 1993 season. Never ranked worse than 11th, and top 5 for the majority of the season Notre Dame headed into a 1 vs 2 match-ups against Florida State in November.
The Irish jumped the Seminoles on the back of an excellent second quarter. The wind swirled, and Notre Dame pounded Florida State early. The Seminoles made a late comeback, but it failed and the Irish took over as the front runner to win the National Championship.
Disaster came in Notre Dame’s next game against Boston College, and they lost a letdown game. Florida State would take over the number one spot again, and wouldn’t give it back again this time. Notre Dame would lose out on a National Championship to a team they beat head to head.
However bitter the disappointment was it isn’t enough to sour the career of the 1993 team’s best all-around player, Aaron Taylor.