University of North Carolina Athletics
Tim Taylor, in his first year on the UNC sidelines, made a triumphant return to his hometown of Charlottesville.
Photo by: Dana Gentry
Victorious UNC Trip Included Homecoming For Taylor
January 3, 2020 | Women's Basketball
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – In the crowd of more than 2,500 at John Paul Jones Arena on Thursday night for the UNC-Virginia women's basketball game, there were of course plenty of Cavalier fans. There were also some Tar Heel fans. And it was Star Wars Night, so there were Princess Leia fans.
And then there were Tim Taylor fans. Lots and lots of Tim Taylor fans.
"It was very humbling," Taylor said. "That's the best word I could use."
UNC beat UVa 65-47, and afterward Taylor conducted more media interviews than head coach Courtney Banghart, a fact that would make any longtime assistant coach highly uncomfortable, with Taylor no exception. But that's the way it is when you return to a place where you spent pretty much your entire life up until moving to Chapel Hill in June.
Taylor, part of Banghart's first-year staff, grew up just outside Charlottesville, spent three different stints on the UVa women's basketball staff, and coached high school boys' teams in the area. He was the principal at a middle school in nearby Madison, and he and his wife, Tonya, raised three kids here. He's well-known enough that when the Tar Heel team walked into a restaurant for dinner the night before the game, patrons had one question upon seeing all the UNC logos: "Where's Tim Taylor?"
Banghart was watching film late Thursday night in her hotel room when a story about Taylor came on the local news. "It was so much fun to see him highlighted," she said. "Seeing his smile and the impact he had on Virginia players ... we live that every day. It was awesome to see.
(Watch the CBS 19 story here and read the NBC 29 story here.)
"Tim is such a loyal guy that getting him out of Charlottesville was a big deal for us. What he's brought is his loyalty to the student-athletes that he coaches and to the program and to our success. He's just a real pleasure to be around every day."
The decision to leave the area wasn't an easy one, especially since it meant uprooting his younger son, who is in high school. (His daughter and older son are in college.)
"I'm at a stage in my career that you want to be able to impact something and make it pretty special," he said. "It's not chasing a job to be chasing a job. The Carolina brand and Carolina itself and the people I met when I was on the interview swayed me to where I felt like it would be a really good place for my family."
The outpouring of affection on Thursday night in his first trip back as a Tar Heel assistant still had Taylor smiling a day later. Granted, the return was a bit odd: he'd never watched a game from the visiting bench at JPJ, and he didn't even know where the visiting locker room was. On the other hand, he relished seeing friends who are diehard Virginia fans sporting Carolina gear ("something I never thought I'd see") in support of him. He couldn't say how many family and friends he had at the game, but 100 is a conservative estimate.
In addition to seeing the Cavalier players he coached (his last year on staff there was 2017-18, when this year's seniors were sophomores), he delighted in seeing ushers, security guards, and the scores of support people who operate behind the scenes in any athletic program. "That meant a lot to me to be able to go back and see them," Taylor said. "They did a lot for me when I was there."
And even though he's part of the Carolina family now, Thursday's reception proved he's still considered family here, too.
And then there were Tim Taylor fans. Lots and lots of Tim Taylor fans.
"It was very humbling," Taylor said. "That's the best word I could use."
UNC beat UVa 65-47, and afterward Taylor conducted more media interviews than head coach Courtney Banghart, a fact that would make any longtime assistant coach highly uncomfortable, with Taylor no exception. But that's the way it is when you return to a place where you spent pretty much your entire life up until moving to Chapel Hill in June.
Taylor, part of Banghart's first-year staff, grew up just outside Charlottesville, spent three different stints on the UVa women's basketball staff, and coached high school boys' teams in the area. He was the principal at a middle school in nearby Madison, and he and his wife, Tonya, raised three kids here. He's well-known enough that when the Tar Heel team walked into a restaurant for dinner the night before the game, patrons had one question upon seeing all the UNC logos: "Where's Tim Taylor?"
Banghart was watching film late Thursday night in her hotel room when a story about Taylor came on the local news. "It was so much fun to see him highlighted," she said. "Seeing his smile and the impact he had on Virginia players ... we live that every day. It was awesome to see.
(Watch the CBS 19 story here and read the NBC 29 story here.)
"Tim is such a loyal guy that getting him out of Charlottesville was a big deal for us. What he's brought is his loyalty to the student-athletes that he coaches and to the program and to our success. He's just a real pleasure to be around every day."
The decision to leave the area wasn't an easy one, especially since it meant uprooting his younger son, who is in high school. (His daughter and older son are in college.)
"I'm at a stage in my career that you want to be able to impact something and make it pretty special," he said. "It's not chasing a job to be chasing a job. The Carolina brand and Carolina itself and the people I met when I was on the interview swayed me to where I felt like it would be a really good place for my family."
The outpouring of affection on Thursday night in his first trip back as a Tar Heel assistant still had Taylor smiling a day later. Granted, the return was a bit odd: he'd never watched a game from the visiting bench at JPJ, and he didn't even know where the visiting locker room was. On the other hand, he relished seeing friends who are diehard Virginia fans sporting Carolina gear ("something I never thought I'd see") in support of him. He couldn't say how many family and friends he had at the game, but 100 is a conservative estimate.
In addition to seeing the Cavalier players he coached (his last year on staff there was 2017-18, when this year's seniors were sophomores), he delighted in seeing ushers, security guards, and the scores of support people who operate behind the scenes in any athletic program. "That meant a lot to me to be able to go back and see them," Taylor said. "They did a lot for me when I was there."
And even though he's part of the Carolina family now, Thursday's reception proved he's still considered family here, too.
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