The Prairie View A&M football team will pay homage to one of its greatest players in program history as legendary standout Otis Taylor will receive a package of PVAMU memorabilia.
PVAMU Athletic Director Ashley Robinson, head coach Willie Simmons and members of the football team donated an autographed football and various other PVAMU memorabilia to Taylor. Along with Robinson and Simmons, longtime athletic supporter Phyllis Darden-Caldwell and Prairie View Magazine publisher Dewayne Charleston also assisted with the transporting of the memorabilia to Taylor, who currently resides in the Kansas City suburb of Raytown.
"Otis Taylor is arguably one of the greatest Panthers to ever don the Purple and Gold," said Robinson. "He is still highly respected across NFL circles and we would like to brighten his day and honor him with items that remind him of his days as a student-athlete here at Prairie View A&M. We will also honor him in our new football stadium as a banner donning his picture will hang from the stadium facade."
The all-time leading wide receiver in PVAMU history, Taylor moved on to become one of the all-time greats for the Kansas City Chiefs. Taylor played in both the American and National Football Leagues during his tenure as a Chief and compiled a Super Bowl Championship, multiple Pro Bowl appearances and all-pro honors. Taylor concluded his career with 7,306 receiving yards, averaged 17.8 yards per catch, 410 receptions and 57 touchdowns.
A former standout at Worthing High School in Houston, Taylor played a key role in helping PVAMU secure the 1963 and 1964 Black College National and SWAC Championships. Taylor's single season mark of 1,015 receiving yards held for nearly 50 years while he still remains PVAMU's all-time leader in career receiving yardage (2,220) and still holds the single game record in receiving yardage (198).
"I wish Otis the best as he's a Prairie View legend our athletes can aspire to be like," said Simmons. "It means a lot for us to give back as I hope this lifts his spirits and makes everyone feels good.
"Otis is a part of that legendary era at Prairie View A&M which is what we aspire to get back to," added Simmons. "Players like Otis and Kenny Houston paved the way for the current guys such as Johnta' Hebert, Jerry Lovelocke and Trey Green as they put Prairie View on a national scale based on their success in the NFL and AFL. The players need to understand where Prairie View A&M came from and who was behind the success."
