Rockhurst senior A.J. Taylor, state’s top-ranked recruit, signs with Wisconsin

In the week of practice preceding the Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl in Carson, Calif., the West team’s coaching staff held a meeting with its players, asking each of them what position they preferred to play during the game.

The list eventually landed on Rockhurst senior A.J. Taylor.

“Anywhere you need me,” he responded.

Running back. Wide receiver. Cornerback. Kick returner.

Taylor tried them all during his time at Rockhurst — often over the course of a single game. The versatility helped make him the state’s top-ranked senior recruit on Rivals.com.

On Wednesday, Taylor signed a national letter of intent to continue his football career at Wisconsin, where coaches will ask him to narrow his focus to wide receiver and kick returner.

“I’m a pretty versatile athlete, and I know that if I’m asked to play something, I’m just going to have to put my mind to it, and I can do it,” Taylor said. “I feel like I can really excel at receiver at Wisconsin. I just want them to use my skills to the best of their ability and my ability.”

Taylor originally committed to Wisconsin in August, using a Monopoly game board to unveil his college decision. He stuck with that choice Wednesday, despite late pushes from a couple of other Big Ten schools.

As a senior for Rockhurst, Taylor rushed for 1,721 yards and totaled 22 touchdowns last fall. He had more than 5,000 all-purpose yards during his career.

This story was originally published February 3, 2016 at 2:19 PM with the headline "Rockhurst senior A.J. Taylor, state’s top-ranked recruit, signs with Wisconsin."