There are a few more dollars in John Taylor's pockets now that he doesn't have to hit the freeway every day to coach basketball.
Taylor, hired in June to coach the women's team at Antelope Valley College, commuted from his home in Lancaster to coach at Valley the last seven seasons.
"The gas money I'm saving is incredible," Taylor said. "I haven't filled up the tank in my car in three weeks and I used to fill up like three times a week."
Taylor replaces Jackie Lott, who was removed as Antelope Valley's coach in May and reassigned to a teaching position. She had several confrontations with players and assistants in her 10 seasons with the team.
Mike Muro, Taylor's top assistant the last five seasons, is the new Valley coach.
"John and Mike are great guys," said Chuck Ferrero, Valley's athletic director. "Not often do you get to replace a classy guy with a classy guy."
Taylor's teams were perennial Western State Conference contenders. The Monarchs won the 1995-96 WSC Southern Division title and reached the state championships in 1999. They had a 144-93 record under Taylor.
But the drive to Van Nuys (Valley Glen to Realtors) was wearing on Taylor. He was spending too much time away from wife Kathi and sons Sean, 17, Brian, 15, and Matthew, 10.
Taylor, a roving physical education teacher for special education students at Lancaster elementary and middle schools, recently received his master's degree in education from Chapman University.
"Hopefully, if the opportunity comes up, I can get a full-time teaching position [at Antelope Valley]," Taylor said.
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Football camps are popping up everywhere and prognosticators are busy with their Ouija boards, but don't count Coach Terry Morris of Ventura among those who pay much attention to predictions.
The Pirates are ranked No. 14 in a California preseason poll by JCFootball.com, a Web site that promises "comprehensive coverage of junior college football nationwide."
Among other things, the Web site lists top Division I prospects, including tight end Terrance Doty of Ventura.
"That shows how far behind those guys are," Morris said of the Web site. "Terrance is already at Cal. He's signed, sealed and delivered."
Morris said Doty, 6 feet 4 and 300 pounds, signed with Cal about a month ago after only one season at Ventura. Doty was a standout at Santa Clara High.
