The 50 most important college players in Texas in 2016 — No. 30: Baylor's Taylor Young

[caption id="attachment_23477" align="alignright" width="206"]cottonbowl2015_041 Photo by Diana Porter[/caption] The importance of a player is not always defined by their skill. The most important player on a team is not always the best player on a team. This list is designed to breakdown the 50 most important players in Texas college football for the 2016 season. It is not a ranking of the 50 best college football players in the state. Importance can be defined by position, need, skill or leadership. We’ll count down the list through the summer, all the way to No. 1.Previously — 31: TCU RB Shaun Nixon // 32: Texas A&M WR Christian Kirk // 33: Houston WR Chance Allen // 34: UTSA QB Jared Johnson // 35: ACU LB Sam Denmark // 36: Houston Baptist RB Terrance Peters // 37: Rice DE Graysen Schantz // 38: UTEP DE Alvin Jones // 39: SMU RB Xavier Jones // 40: Sam Houston RB Corey Avery // 41: Prairie View A&M DE DeVohn Reed // 42: Texas State WR Demun Mercer // 43: UTEP S Devin Cockrell // 44: UNT DT Bryce English // 45: Texas OL Connor Williams // 46: Texas Tech DT Breiden Fehoko // 47: Houston DT B.J. Singleton // 48: Texas A&M DT Daylon Mack // 49: TCU S Denzel Johnson  // 50: Baylor S Chance WazNo. 30 – Baylor linebacker Taylor YoungThe History Baylor’s defensive reputation early in Art Briles’ career was one of skepticism. No one doubted Briles’ ability to recruit talent on offense, but the Bears weren’t to compete for a Big 12 title, and maybe even more, until the recruiting on defense started matching the offense. Linebacker Taylor Young was one of the first big recruiting wins on defense for Briles in the Dallas area. Hailing from DeSoto, Young was the 2012 Texas 2012 Class 5A Defensive Player of the Year and a second-team MaxPreps All-American after totaling 130 tackles, three sacks, three forced fumbles and four interceptions. He was the District 7-5A Defensive MVP, as well. This followed a junior season with 116 tackles and a starting job at linebacker as a sophomore. Young redshirted in 2013 before coming of age in the Big 12 as a redshirt freshman in 2014. He started eight games that year at weakside linebacker, playing in all 13 games. Young was named a Freshman All-American by nearly every service, including USA Today and FWAA. He was also named Defensive MVP of the 2015 Cotton Bowl. Young finished the season with 92 tackles, an interception, two forced fumbles and four sacks. His sophomore season ended with 80 tackles, including 13.5 for loss. He failed to record an interception, but notched three sacks and recovered a fumble. The Skillset Young is an active linebacker who does his best work when coming downhill against the run. He’s a menace in the backfield, building a reputation as a linebacker with the skills to disrupt a play before it begins. His quickness helps compensate for his 5-foot-10 frame. His speed gives him a chance on each blitz and allows him to make a lot of tackles by chasing down plays from the backside. Young is also proficient in pass coverage. The days of towering linebackers in the Big 12 are long gone. Modern offenses require defenses to find linebackers who can play in space, disrupt the passer and cover running backs, tight ends and slot receivers on passing downs. Young can do all three if he can stay healthy for a full season. The Impact Young recorded over 170 stops through two seasons. He is cemented as the starter at WLB for the Bears in 2016. His impact must grow with Baylor replacing so many talented players on the defensive line, including defensive tackle Andrew Billings. Young finished third on the team with 80 tackles as a junior and needs to approach the 100-tackle mark as a junior. Travon Blanchard, also a linebacker, is Baylor’s leading returning tackler. Young falls right behind him. That duo at linebacker could combine for nearly 200 tackles and 20 tackles for loss in 2016. The Bears offense is once again expected to be one of the best in the country. A solid defense, led by linebacker Taylor Young, could be the difference for a program aiming for a Big 12 Championship.

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