Miles Taylor

Miles Taylor, a four-year Iowa football letterman who completed his playing career in 2017, is in his first year as a graduate assistant with the University of Iowa football program. Taylor, who served as a student assistant in 2018, works with the Hawkeye defense. Iowa has won a combined 37 games over the past four seasons, matching the third-best total in school history over any four-year period. Iowa completed the 2018 season with a 9-4 mark and a final ranking of 25th in the Associated Press national rankings. Iowa won six of its first seven games in 2018 and closed the season with wins in the final three games, including the 27-22 Outback Bowl win over No. 18 Mississippi State. The Hawkeyes won three of four trophy games for the third time in four seasons. The four losses came by a total of 23 points and all were decided in the final minutes of play. Iowa’s 5-4 Big Ten record earned a tie for second place in the West Division. The Hawkeyes posted a perfect 12-0 regular season record in 2015, winning the West Division of the Big Ten Conference. Iowa participated in the 2016 Rose Bowl Game and the 2015 Big Ten Championship and ended the season in the top 10 in the final national rankings.  Along with winning its most recent two bowl games, Iowa also participated in the 2017 Outback Bowl, 2016 Rose Bowl Game, 2015 TaxSlayer Bowl and 2014 Outback Bowl. The Hawkeyes have ranked in the final top 10 of both major polls five times in the past 17 seasons. Iowa has appeared in 11 January bowl games since 2001 and has recorded January bowl wins over Florida (2004 Outback), LSU (2005 Capital One), South Carolina (2009 Outback), Georgia Tech (2010 Orange), and Mississippi State (2019 Outback). Iowa tied for second in the nation in interceptions (20) in 2018 after leading the nation in 2017. Iowa’s 41 thefts over the past two seasons also lead the nation. Iowa last season also ranked seventh nationally in total defense (293.6), eighth in turnovers gained (27) 11th in scoring defense (17.8) and 12th in rushing defense (109.5). Iowa’s defense was second in the Big Ten in red zone defense and third in total sacks (35). In 2018 junior defensive back Amani Hooker was named the Tatum-Woodson Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year, marking the fourth Hawkeye to earn that honor since 2012 (Josh Jackson, 2017, Desmond King, 2015, Micah Hyde, 2012). Hooker earned first-team All-Big honors and second-team All-America recognition, and declared for the NFL Draft following his junior season. The Hawkeye defense led the nation with 21 interceptions in 2017, led by defensive back Josh Jackson, who led the nation individually with eight interceptions to match Iowa’s single-season record. Jackson and linebacker Josey Jewell each earned unanimous consensus All-America honors. The Hawkeyes ranked 17th in the nation in scoring defense (19.9), allowing less than 20 points per game for the third consecutive season. Iowa matched a school record with four interception return touchdowns. Jackson, in his first year as a starter, also led the nation in passes defended, ranked second in interception return yards and return touchdowns, and ranked fourth in pass break-ups. He had two interception returns for touchdowns and tied Iowa’s single-game record with three interceptions in a 55-24 win over third-ranked Ohio State. Taylor started nine games at strong safety in 2017 and had 41 career starts.  He did not play in the Pinstripe Bowl due to injury. He was Iowa’s recipient of Big Ten Conference Sportsmanship Award in 2017, and earned the Team Hustle Award for defense in three straight seasons (2015-17). He was one of three players to see action as a true freshman in 2014. Taylor collected 169 career tackles, including 102 solo stops and 67 assists. He had 3.5 tackles for loss, five pass break-ups, one interception and one recovered fumble. He had a career-best of eight tackles in four games, and a high of seven solo tackles vs. Stanford in the 2016 Rose Bowl. Taylor is a native of Silver Springs, Maryland, where he attended Gonzaga High School. He earned first-team all-conference and all-metro honors as a senior. He was a three-year starter as a prep and the first player at Gonzaga high School to be a two-time defensive MVP, leading the team in tackles in both seasons. Taylor earned his bachelor’s degree in Political Science. He is pursuing a master’s degree in Sport and Recreation Management. Taylor was born Dec. 14, 1995.