Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Powell eager for fresh start at Troy
There were plenty of black and gold colors at Fayetteville High School on Feb. 1, in 2017 when quarterback Taylor Powell signed with Missouri and receiver Barrett Bannister was invited to join the Tigers as a walk-on.
They were joined later at Missouri by Fayetteville teammate Akial Byers, a defensive lineman who became eligible for Division I status after initially committing on the same day in 2017 to Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College.
Bannister and Byers are still with the Tigers. But Powell announced in September he was leaving the program after playing in 12 games and making one start in two years at Missouri. Powell eventually chose Troy State, a Sun Belt Conference school in Alabama, where he’ll have two years to play.
Powell is a high achiever who graduated in three years at Missouri with a degree in psychology. But his goals on the football field in college have been largely unfulfilled and his decision to transfer was aided by the NCAA, which announced last spring college athletes could transfer to another Division I school one time without having to sit out a year.
“There were a lot of schools showing interest in me, but I chose Troy because of their head coach and the offense they run.,” said Powell, who graduated from Missouri in May. “So, I’m just ready to continue the process and fulfill my dream of throwing the ball a bunch and winning games.”
Troy is led by Chip Lindsey, who attempted to recruit Powell to Arizona State when Lindsey was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Sun Devils. Lindsey has helped develop several quarterbacks, including San Francisco 49ers quarterback Nick Mullens, and he jumped at the opportunity to recruit Powell again after he announced he was leaving Missouri.
“You don’t know sometimes what you’re getting in a grad transfer, but I already know what we’re getting with Taylor,” Lindsey said. “He’s a smart kid with a lot of maturity and I know he’s going to come in and be ready to compete.”
Troy’s Spread offense appears suited for Powell, who threw for 3,473 yards and 44 touchdowns as a senior for Fayetteville in 2016. Powell completed 66 percent of his passes that year while leading the Bulldogs to a 12-1 record and a second consecutive state championship.
“Excited to see you in that offense,” Bill Blankenship, Powell’s former coach at Fayetteville, posted on Twitter. “Air it out, son!”
Taylor will compete with sophomore Gunnar Watson and junior Jacob Free for the starting quarterback position at Troy, which finished 5-6 overall and 3-4 in the Sun Belt Conference in 2020. Watson started nine games and threw for 2,141 yards with seven interceptions. Watson missed two games because of an injury and was replaced by Free, who threw for 1,051 yards with six touchdowns and five interceptions.
“Everywhere I’ve been, I’ve had quarterback battles,” Powell said. “In high school, I competed with Jack Lindsey at quarterback and he turned out to be one of my best friends. I’m always going to put the team first and not do anything to disrupt the team. I just want a chance to compete.”
Powell hopes to unleash his potential with a fresh start at Troy after mostly being passed over at Missouri. He served as the primary backup in 2018 to Drew Lock, who is the starting quarterback now with the Denver Broncos. Missouri then garnered national attention in 2019 when the Tigers added former Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant to the roster. Weeks later, Texas Christian quarterback Shawn Robinson announced he, too, was transferring to Missouri.
Bryant started 10 games for Missouri in 2019 before Connor Bazelak took over and guided the Tigers to a 5-5 record in 2020 that concluded with consecutive losses to Georgia and Mississippi State.
Powell played in six games in 2019 and made his only start against Georgia, when he completed 10 of 22 passes for 84 yards during a 27-0 loss to the then-No. 4 ranked Bulldogs. His most memorable game came three weeks later when he came off the bench and helped Missouri to 24-14 victory over Arkansas at War Memorial Stadium.
Powell replaced Bazelak, who was injured in the first half, and completed 8 of 14 passes 105 yards and a touchdown. Bannister led Missouri with six catches for 60 yards against the hometown Razorbacks, who started Jack Lindsey, his former Fayetteville teammates, at quarterback that day.
“That was a lot of fun,” said Powell, who led Fayetteville to a 53-19 victory over North Little Rock in the Class 7A state championship game at War Memorial Stadium in 2016. “Playing against the Razorbacks and having a good game at War Memorial is something I’ll always remember.”
Powell is not through facing SEC competition at Troy, which has won or shared four Sun Belt Conference championships since 2006. The Trojans will play at South Carolina in 2021 before opening the season at Mississippi in 2022.
Powell said in high school the fear of not reaching his full potential is what drives him. Once his eligibility is complete, the former Fayetteville Bulldog is hopeful he’ll be able to look back and be satisfied his athletic career was as successful as his work in the classroom.
He’ll get another chance with a fresh start at Troy in 2021.