Coach Robert “Bobby” Taylor and wife Janell
Robert “Bobby” Taylor is started as Paris Junior College’s men’s basketball coach on Jan. 8, replacing Coach Bilal Batley.
Taylor comes to PJC after having served as assistant coach of the men’s basketball team at Texas A&M University – Commerce since 2011.
“Coach Batley stepped down as head men’s basketball coach on Jan. 7 for personal reasons. We respect and support his decision,” said PJC President Dr. Pam Anglin. “We were very fortunate to be able to bring Coach Bobby Taylor in as the head coach. Coach Taylor was able to make arrangements at Texas A&M University – Commerce to take over the PJC team on Thursday. We welcome Coach Taylor and his wife Janell back to PJC.”
Taylor served as assistant coach of the PJC men’s basketball team in 1996-98, working under former coach Bill Foy. While at PJC, he recruited and coached DeJuan Brown, who was named the 2001 NAIA National Player of the Year.
“I feel very excited; I feel like I’m coming home,” said Taylor. “It’s been 20 years and I’m seeing a lot of the same faces. I’m really blessed to have this opportunity to lead Dragon basketball. At TAMU-C we’ve had a long line of PJC players – even before my time there, I know from when I was an assistant at PJC there’s always been that pipeline. So I have familiarity with the program and former head coach Chuck Taylor is a friend of mine. The ‘marriage’ between PJC and TAMU-C is natural and those guys come in academically as well as athletically prepared.”
At TAMU-C Taylor helped lead the Lions to a 24-8 overall record during the 2014-15 season, as well as winning the 2014-15 LSC Tournament Championship and appearing in the NCAA Tournament. In the last two seasons the Lions had a 43-17 overall record.
Taylor developed two players currently affiliated with the NBA: Devondrick Walker with the San Antonio Spurs and Darrell Williams with the Chicago Bulls. Williams was the 2015 LSC Player of the Year, LSC Newcomer of the Year, First Team All-LSC, NCAA South Central Region Player of the Year, NCAA First Team All-South Central Region, NCAA First Team All-American and TABC Small College Player of the Year.
