He can fly! Watch this Coastal Carolina wide receiver do a running backflip in full pads
Roaring motorcycles, teal lights, towers of fire, and “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins greeted the Coastal Carolina football team as it rushed onto the teal turf at Brooks Stadium before Saturday’s game against the Georgia Southern Eagles. But one CCU player made his mark on the moment among the spectacle and smoke. Wide receiver Tray Taylor didn’t run out with most of his teammates — instead, he was among the last to exit the tunnel.
As he ran onto the field, Taylor lunged forward into a cartwheel and used his momentum from the acrobatic technique to jump into a backflip. Coastal Carolina lost to Georgia Southern 26-6 and Taylor didn’t record a catch, although he dropped a pass from CCU quarterback Ethan Vasko.
However, Taylor became known this season for performing the running maneuver in full pads before home games.
Taylor backflipped before the Old Dominion University and Appalachian State games at Brooks Stadium. The first-year Chant has merged football with gymnastic flair for years. Taylor said in a Nov. 13 interview that he did a backflip before every home game last season while playing for Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Texas.
“I knew backflips, like, get people hype, so it was just like, ‘I’m going to just do it, and then everybody should get lit off of it,’” Taylor said during the November interview. “It’ll bring more energy.”
While he’s never participated in gymnastics, Taylor’s long known how to be acrobatic. He first learned to backflip in elementary school, from a cousin in his grandmother’s yard. However, it’s Taylor’s athleticism that brought him to Coastal.
Recruited as a return specialist and wide receiver, Taylor serves as a deep threat for Vasko on offense. Using his speed, Taylor frequently went long this season and tried to punch holes in opponents’ secondary.
“I try my best not to get touched so they won’t get no hands on me, and then I probably know I’m faster than them,” Taylor added. “I just put my head down, and from that point on, I feel like I won that battle.”
The results are mixed, though. Taylor flashed his blinding speed in strong performances against Jacksonville State and William & Mary to start the season. However, he also dropped a potential touchdown in Coastal’s loss to Troy University.
This story was originally published November 23, 2024 at 6:08 PM.
