Building a Culture of Champions: Inside Travis Taylor’s Collaborative Village

August 2025

Travis Taylor smiling in front of a blurred football stadium, wearing a suit with an orange-and-white striped tie.

Travis Taylor is redefining athlete development at Tennessee with his holistic Collaborative Village approach.

When we talk about college football, the spotlight often stays on the scoreboard. But Travis Taylor, Player Engagement leader at Tennessee Football, is flipping the script. In his first interview with Fan Day Nation, Travis introduces the “Collaborative Village,” a transformative model that redefines what it means to support student-athletes in the NIL era. More than just a philosophy, it’s a fully operational framework helping players grow into champions on the field and leaders in life.

The Heart of the Collaborative Village

At its core, Taylor’s approach is simple: “This isn’t just about football drills and bags and schemes. This is an organization of holistic growth.”

The Collaborative Village model equips players with the resources, systems, and support networks they need to succeed as both athletes and young adults. It also challenges coaches and institutions to think bigger.

Here’s how it works.

For Athletes: Laying the Foundation Early

The path to excellence starts before the first snap. Travis focuses on:

Support systems: Every athlete needs a “champion:” a trusted adult, coach, or family member who helps guide key decisions.
Academic planning: Taylor pushes athletes to choose meaningful majors, not just follow the crowd.
Program fit: It’s not about the flash, it’s about fit. “You’re scouting them just as much as they’re scouting you,” Taylor says.
Time management & coachability: Players must learn quickly how to navigate college life, NIL pressures, and expectations as paid performers.
Sacrifice: “A lot of people say they want to be elite, but they don’t know what it really takes.” Taylor breaks that mindset early and often.

Football helmet, shoulder pads, and a ball displayed in front of locker room doors.

The locker room isn’t just where teams prepare. It’s the sacred space where culture is protected, according to Travis Taylor.

For Coaches: Protecting the Locker Room

The Collaborative Village isn’t just about the players. Taylor calls on coaches to build environments rooted in integrity and intention:

Hire people who love people: Staff should be relationship-driven, not just skill-focused.
Prioritize parent relationships: Trust and transparency with families matter more than ever.
Vet your culture: “The locker room is sacred,” says Taylor. One toxic influence can unravel everything.

Why Data Matters

It’s not just talk: Taylor backs his work with metrics. He tracks everything from housing situations and nutrition habits to sleep cycles and academic performance. These data points drive real conversations and early interventions.

“If I know a player’s struggling in class, I want to know why,” he explains. “Maybe it’s not math, it’s that he just broke up with his girlfriend back home. I need to know that so I can get him the right support.”

Person writing in a notebook while calculating finances at a desk with coins, bills, and a pink piggy bank.

With NIL reshaping college sports, financial literacy is one of the core pillars in Travis Taylor’s athlete support system.

Preparing for NIL and Beyond

Taylor is deeply aware of how NIL is reshaping college athletics. That’s why financial literacy, branding, and career planning are cornerstones of his program.

“Let’s not celebrate. Let’s plan and organize,” he says. “Because this might be the most money some of these kids will ever see. It has to last.”

Rooted in Experience

A former college athlete and first-generation student himself, Taylor’s motivation runs deep. He knows what it feels like to arrive on campus without a map. That’s why he works tirelessly to make sure today’s players have the tools, connections, and structure to thrive.

Where to Watch

You can catch Travis Taylor’s full interview on our YouTube homepage and dive deeper into his vision for the future of college football. This is the first of several conversations with Travis, each one unpacking a new layer of what it means to truly support student-athletes.

The future of college sports depends on leaders who see the whole person, not just the player. Travis Taylor is building that future one relationship, one data point, and one life-changing conversation at a time. The Collaborative Village is more than a concept: it’s a call to action.