Linsly senior Landon Taylor cuts an imposing figure. Standing 6-foot-3 and checking in at 240 pounds, Taylor uses his combination of size and strength to his advantage as a defensive lineman for head coach Terry Depew’s talented Cadets’ football team.
But the gridiron isn’t the only arena for Taylor’s found success. He’s also a state-champion powerlifter in Ohio.
Back during the Spring, Taylor competed, and won, in the junior 16-17 age division at the United States Powerlifting Association’s Ohio State Championships. In the process, he established a state record squad of 501.5 bounds, finishing with three first-place finishes, to go with a third-place mark in the open division against older competition.
His foray into weight training and eventually power-lifting resulted from a desire to increase his strength for football. That journey began during his eighth-grade year. Those initial steps on this journey were slow and tedious. He may hold records now, but those first lifts as an 8th grader were pedestrian—the same for all beginning lifters.
That first squat? Ninety-five pounds. Bench? Only 45 pounds and, for those un-initiated in lifting, the bar itself weighs 45 pounds. That’s a far cry from his current top marks of 360 on the bench, and 500 plus in both squat and deadlift.
The gains were slow to come at first, but that mantra of “show up” and keep working helped the younger Taylor persevere and push through.
“The initial hurdle was just showing up,” he admitted. “I went to the gym practically every day but I was not always motivated. My parents helped me with this, specifically my dad in reminding me of my goals and why I’m doing what I’m doing.
“Lifting is hard. Showing up and seeing no improvement for weeks and still showing up is hard. But if I could say one thing to athletes wanting to get into powerlifting is to just show up.
“Lifting is very simple. If you show up and do the work, you will get better.”
Taylor has undoubtedly shown up and his PRs, and performance on the athletic fields, bear that out.
His dedication to the craft has allowed Taylor to generate some interest as a defensive lineman. He’s caught the attention of the Yellow Jackets coaching staff at Baldwin Wallace University, who formerly expressed their interest back in May. He’s had officials visits elsewhere too.
The young man has a future in football and powerlifting. Might his strength one day parlay into strongman competitions? Maybe, but for now, Taylor is focusing on his senior year, on lifting, as well as football, wrestling, and track.
What first got you into lifting in general and how’d you make your way to powerlifting?
The thing that got me into lifting was football. I started in eighth grade six or seven days a week and haven’t slowed down since, powerlifting came along with this journey. One night my dad and I were sitting at the kitchen table and were curious on how close to the records I was. due to me going to the gym all the time. After looking at them on the website I signed up for my first powerlifting meet which started my career.
Do you modify your lifting schedule when working out with the team? Or do you have license to perform your own lifting regiment?
I always do what the team does first, I have football workouts in the morning and then after that, I go to the gym to do workouts generally constructed by my trainer Cole Smelley, which is geared toward my specific needs.
What was more exciting, winning the Ohio state championship for your age level, or breaking one of the records?
It happened simultaneously, my favorite singular lift happened during the state championship which was my 501-pound squat which I have had as a goal since 8th grade so that was a huge milestone for me. Winning it definitely felt great.
Of the big three lifts, which do you like the best? The least? And why?
My favorite lift is definitely my squat because it is the one I’m strongest at. The rush of adrenaline you get Squatting 500 pounds feels like nothing else. It’s incredible. My least favorite Is the deadlift, this is because I struggle with back injuries which I have been working to rehabilitate. I also only deadlift about 500 pounds which sounds like a lot but does not match up as well against the older competition, as well as my squat and bench, does.
How has your efforts in the gym not only paid off on the field but when you go to collegiate camps and measure up to and against other athletes?
I play defensive line in football which is a very violent position. Being strong definitely helps in competing against other athletes, especially those that are bigger than me. I am 6-3, 240 pounds, which isn’t quite as big as some of the other linemen but I offset that fact with my strength.
