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Former Florida RB Kelvin Taylor tells the ‘throat slash’ story at NFL Combine
By Nick Cole
Published:
Remember Kelvin Taylor’s “throat slash” touchdown celebration in the Gators’ win against East Carolina back in September?
It drew an unsportsmanlike penalty and set off a profanity-laced tirade from Florida coach Jim McElwain.
Many assumed it was a tribute to the former Florida RB’s legendary father, Fred, who also played for the Gators before a long NFL career primarily with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
After all, that was one of Fred’s signature celebrations before the league outlawed it.
But according to a report from SEC Country’s Alex Martin Smith, that’s not the real story.
The younger Taylor was asked about the throat-slash incident at the NFL Combine on Wednesday, and he told a different story.
“It wasn’t a tribute to my father at all,” he said Wednesday afternoon. “I took it as, the game was over. It’s a wrap.
“People really blew it out of proportion. It really wasn’t me trying to do the throat slash at all. Coach Mac did the right thing, though, because I should’ve never brought any type of attention to myself at the end of the day.”
In fact, Smith reports that Kelvin wasn’t even aware that it was something that his father did until after the incident happened.
“I never even thought about it as the throat slash or anything,” Taylor said. “I didn’t even know my father did that ’til after the game, like two, three, weeks later.”
Taylor decided to forgo his final season with the Gators to purse the NFL following his best performance at Florida in 2015, during which he accumulated 1,035 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns.
Nick Cole is a former print journalist with several years of experience covering the SEC. Born and raised in SEC country, he has taken in the game-day experience at all 14 stadiums.
