Former Gators running back Fred Taylor came to UF on Monday to warn students not to fumble when it comes to student loans.
Taylor, a class of ’98 UF alumnus and former Jacksonville Jaguars running back, came out to the Plaza of the Americas on Monday afternoon to support student loan site Loanlook.com.
Loanlook.com provides federal and private loan information, budgeting tools and a live chat with trained loan counselors, all on one dashboard that can be accessed from students’ computers and phones.
“I saw the interest my family accrued on their student loans as time went by, and it was a financial nightmare,” he said. “I made it to the NFL, so they would hit me up to help pay off the loans, and it even got draining on me.”
Sabrina Blake, a second-year UF marriage and family counseling graduate student, said she admired that Taylor came back to support the community where he got his start.
Blake, 24, grinned from ear to ear as she posed for a photo with Taylor.
“The fact that he is a well-known athlete and keeps the Jacksonville and UF communities in his heart will help students be aware of the different options they have financially,” Blake said.
Taylor said he knew it was important to engage students about their financial situation because they need to know what they are getting into with student loans and how to handle them in the future.
He said Loanlook.com is the solution to getting the right background information on loans.
The site will tell students how much they owe on their loan, the interest on it and who they owe the money to.
“I think we see students way too much nowadays take out student loans carelessly and don’t look at the future impact,” said Alex Romero, a 21-year-old linguistics junior. “The site looks very convenient.”
