RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – Defensive back Tainique Taylor has been tabbed the Great American Conference Co-Special Teams Player of the Week, the league announced on Monday.
It is Taylor's first time to receive the GAC's weekly honor in his career. Additionally, he is the fifth different OBU player to pick up a Player of the Week nod this season and the second to claim the award for special teams.
In Saturday's win over Arkansas-Monticello, Taylor returned a punt 54 yards for a touchdown to cement OBU's sixth victory of 2023. It was just the second punt return in program history and the first of the Division II era.
Taylor added one pass breakup to his stat sheet, boosting his season total to a league-best 14. That figure is tied for third in the country. He surpassed the OBU single-season record for PBU's, set by D'Ante Meeking in 2016 (10), after recording four versus Southwestern Oklahoma State in week seven.
This season, he has 17 tackles, 1.5 tackles-for-loss, and two interceptions. One of those picks he returned for a program-record 78 yards for a score against Southern Arkansas (10/7). To date, he is one of two Bison to record a pick-six and punt return in their career.
Taylor and company return to action on Saturday versus nationally ranked Ouachita Baptist at 1:00 p.m. in Arkadelphia, Ark.
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