PONTIAC, Mich. — As a high school football star in River Rouge, Chester Taylor dreamed of playing in a Michigan state championship game at the Pontiac Silverdome.

        That never happened, but five years later, Taylor will get to play at the stadium where he watched the Detroit Lions as a kid.

        Taylor, a third-team All-American running back for Toledo, will lead the Rockets into the Motor City Bowl on Saturday against Cincinnati.

        “If you grow up here and play football, you always want to play for the title at the Silverdome,” Taylor said.

        Taylor rushed for 1,430 yards and 20 touchdowns as a fifth-year senior, helping the Rockets end Marshall's four-year reign atop the Mid-American Conference. Taylor lost a year as an academic non-qualifier, but by graduating on time, he was able to return for a fourth season.

        “I wanted to come back and help us win a championship and get to a bowl game,” he said. “This is the way I wanted my career to end.”

        Before the season, some observers wondered how Taylor would adapt to new coach Tom Amstutz's spread offense, a drastic change from the power running game that he was used to playing.

        Taylor's rushing total dropped by just 40 yards, but he scored two more rushing touchdowns than in 2000 and added a career-best three receiving scores.

        “This new offense has been great for me,” Taylor said. “We've always got a wide formation, so teams aren't able to load as many guys in the box against us.”

        With the Silverdome only 100 miles from the Toledo campus, Taylor isn't the only player with friends and family in town for the game. That's why even with a 7a.m. practice scheduled for today, Amstutz allowed his players to stay out until 1a.m. Wednesday night.

        “This game is a reward for our kids — they already achieved our goal when they won the conference title...” Amstutz said.
       “We're certainly taking this game seriously, but it is also our last time together with this group of kids, so we want to find the right balance between work and fun.”

        Taylor is certainly planning to enjoy showing his teammates around town, and he's hoping to have a large fan base at Saturday's game.

        “I'd love to see all of River Rouge show up, but I have no idea who is going to be here,” he said. “People are always telling me that they are going to come see me play, but no one ever seemed to make it down to Toledo. Hopefully, they can make it out here to Pontiac.”

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