Cass Tech RB Julian Taylor collects 4 TDs in playoff win vs Northville

With Cass Tech nursing a nine-point lead with over six minutes left to play, the Technicians fed the ball to junior running back Julian Taylor, hoping he’d run out the clock.

He did one better, scoring on a 20-yard run that put the game out of reach.

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Behind four rushing touchdowns from their star rusher, the top-ranked Technicians (12-0) beat Northville, 40-30, in the  MHSAA football Division 1 regional final on Friday, Nov. 13, in Detroit. With the win, the Technicians will face undefeated Romeo (12-0) in the Division 1 semifinals on Saturday, Nov. 21, one win away from the state finals at Ford Field.

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Taylor will tell you that he wasn’t a one-man show, and based on how Cass Tech’s offensive line and wide receivers were blocking all game, it’s hard to disagree.

“I can’t do nothing without my receivers blocking down the field, my O-line putting people on their butt, opening up a hole, and I just gotta make a play for them,” he said after the game.

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Of course, there was still the individual brilliance. With Cass Tech up 21-17 in the third quarter and deep in Mustang territory, Taylor took a handoff to the left side, bounced off a couple of tacklers and then did his best Jahmyr Gibbs impression, cutting all the way back to the right side of the field and darting towards the end zone for a 28-yard score – his second touchdown.

“I’m not great if I can’t make a guy miss. I gotta make somebody miss,” he said.

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That didn’t come easy in the first half, however, with Taylor putting up just 14 yards on five carries as the Mustangs defense stymied the big runner. Northville (9-3), down 21-0 early in the second quarter, came back with three consecutive scores, two on passing touchdowns from senior quarterback Greyson Harris to junior wideout Jackson DeFore and one on a field goal before halftime to cut the Cass Tech lead to four points.

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The Technicians then leaned on Taylor, with the junior putting up 78 yards on nine rushes in the second half with some help from a ferocious offensive line.

“He’s a monster. Anytime he does touch the ball, he can go for six [points],” said junior Cass Tech quarterback Donald Tabron, a 2028 Texas A&M commit. “He’s able to go make plays for himself, but the O-line is a big aspect of that one. Forty points doesn’t just come from the quarterback, receivers and the running back. … Everything is built off the O-line.”

Tabron flashed some big numbers, too, going 13-for-20 for 239 passing yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He completed a clutch 15-yard fourth-down pass to junior Mylan Griggs in the third quarter that set up Taylor’s third touchdown run, a three-yard dive that came with little resistance.

“He made some big-time throws,” said Taylor. “He’s a five-star [recruit] for a reason. He’s going to Texas A&M for a reason. That’s that guy.”

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Two incredible interceptions

Cass Tech’s defense and special teams weren’t perfect, with two onside kick recoveries from the Mustangs allowing Northville to hang around until the fourth quarter. But the Technicians flashed a pair of highlight-worthy, one-handed interceptions, one from junior defensive back Marquell Evans in the second quarter that saw the junior jumping high, reaching back and snagging the ball with his right hand in a Jordan logo pose.

“[Northville] had scored right before that, so I had to come out and do something for my guys, and then we got the ball right back,” said Evans, a 2028 Pitt commit.

Tabron, who was one of several teammates on the sidelines mimicking Evans’ pose right after the turnover, said he had never seen a play like that in person.

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After a touchdown and a failed 2-point conversion with less than two minutes left in the game, Northville recovered an onside kick and attempted a comeback down by 10 points. A deep throw from Harris landed in the hands of Griggs, who, like Evans, hauled in the takeaway with just one hand.

“Having it [happen] again two quarters later to basically seal the game, wow, [those are] the type of athletes we’ve got,” Tabron said.

Taylor was a bit less impressed by the interceptions, however.

“I mean, yeah, we go to Cass. You see that all the time.”

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You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Cass Tech RB Julian Taylor collects 4 TDs in playoff win vs Northville

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