From a Jumbo to a Patriot

Last week, the men's lacrosse team loss a key player, senior attackman David Taylor, after Taylor was informed that he will commence his duties in the U.S. Army just two weeks after graduation.

The decision to quit the team came after Taylor's commanding ROTC officer informed him of his June Infantry Officer Basic Course (IOBC) date via e-mail.

He recognized the need to focus his energies on preparing for the course. "When I received the e-mail with my IOBC date, I knew right away that I was not prepared physically or academically for the training I was going to undergo," Taylor said.

Coach Mike Daly expressed support for Taylor's decision when the senior broke the news to his teammates in a meeting last Thursday. "I'm torn between being a lacrosse coach and a U.S. citizen," coach Mike Daly said. "It's hard for me to have hard feelings towards [Taylor] because he's leaving the team to defend what we do here."

His teammates' response to his departure was one of Taylor's biggest anxieties. The team, however, respected his decision and was appreciative of the calm and thought-out manner in which Taylor broke the news to them.

"I wasn't so sure the guys were going to understand completely, but the reception I got was amazing," Taylor said. "Everyone stood up, shook my hand and gave me a hug. The immediate support for what I had to do was amazing, and it showed they are an amazing group of guys

Senior tri-captain Tom Mulcahy reaffirmed that the team is fully behind Taylor and appreciates what he's doing for the country, according to Taylor.

"Nobody was really angry," Mulcahy said. "We are all sad for him that he had to make that kind of decision. We know how much he loves the team and lacrosse, and we respect him a lot for telling us the way he did."

Despite Taylor's dominance on the field, Daly is confident that the squad's depth will be able to step up and fill his role. "Anytime you remove a player from the mix, it changes the team dynamic," Daly said. "But I've always tried to develop my team as interchangeable units, and I'm confident the other guys will step in and take advantage of the opportunity given to them."

"Performance-wise, we can't replace him; he was a great player, a leader, and a veteran, but we'll do as good a job as we can," Daly said.

Taylor received the e-mail notice Wednesday morning before the lacrosse team's spring break trip. However, he intentionally deferred telling his teammates and coaches for two major reasons.

"I wanted to wait specifically until after the trip because we were playing Whittier College a week later and I didn't want to distract them from the game," Taylor said. "A win would have put us in the national spotlight, so my number one concern was not distracting the team."

He also wanted to consult his family for advice beforehand.

Taylor, who started all 16 games for Tufts in 2003, was given NESCAC All-Second team honors after scoring 28 goals and dishing out 22 assists, both only second to Griffin for the team lead. This season, Taylor played in and started three games for the Jumbos, and was fifth on the team in both scoring and assists (4G, 2A).

The Jumbos faced their first test without Taylor on Sunday afternoon against the Western New England Golden Bears, and if their 18-9 win is any indication of how the Jumbos will respond to Taylor's loss over the rest of the season, they have little to worry about.

"To lose a senior like Dave who did so well for us and still come away victorious is a real testament to the guys on our team and the job coach Daly is doing," Mulcahy added. "We have a lot of guys that can step in, including a bunch of younger guys."

Usually, cadets coming out of college do not get called for assignment until six months to a year after they graduate. Fourteen other Tufts students are involved with the Army ROTC program. Taylor's IOBC date is the earliest of four other seniors in the Army ROTC.

In June, Taylor will first be sent to an Infantry Officer Basic Course (IOBC) for a 13-week program, during which his army career will officially start and he will cease to be a civilian. Upon completion of the course, Taylor will be sent to Ranger School for nine weeks. After ranger school, he will be assigned to an overseas unit and will be put in charge of an infantry platoon of 40 soldiers.

Taylor spent his freshman year in 1999-2000 at the University of North Carolina, where he both played lacrosse and enrolled in Military ROTC. After a year in Chapel Hill, Taylor left for personal reasons and embarked for China for the next two years.

In the fall of 2002, he enrolled at Tufts as a junior where he joined the Jumbos lacrosse program, while switching to Army ROTC from the marine unit.

While Taylor only played lacrosse for the Brown and Blue for one full season and three games this year, he was quick to make his mark both on and off the field. He and junior All-American Bryan Griffin formed a high powered one-two punch in leading the team to the NESCAC championship game last season.