Taylor finished in the top ten of Heisman Trophy voting three times,[1] was named a unanimous first-team All-American, and was a recipient of the Doak Walker Award in both the 2018 and 2019 seasons.

With the Colts, Taylor led the NFL in both rushing yards and touchdowns in 2021, becoming a unanimous All-Pro and Pro Bowler in the same season.

As a senior, he set the New Jersey record with 2,815 rushing yards, which had been held by former Wisconsin Badgers running back Corey Clement.

[4] Taylor was also an accomplished performer in track and field, and he won two state titles in the 100-meter dash, his best time being 10.49 seconds.

[7][8] After fall camp, Taylor opened his freshman year at Wisconsin in 2017 as one of the team's starting running backs alongside Bradrick Shaw and Chris James.

[14] On October 21, 2017, Taylor reached the 1,000-yard rushing mark in his seventh game, matching the FBS freshman record for fewest games to reach 1,000 yards; the previous backs to accomplish this feat were Florida's Emmitt Smith (1987), San Diego State's Marshall Faulk (1991), Oklahoma's Adrian Peterson (2004), North Texas' Jamario Thomas (2004) and Wisconsin's P. J. Hill (2006).

[18] On November 17, he was named a semifinalist for the Doak Walker Award given to the top running back in the country.

[19] Just three days later, he was named one of three Doak Walker Award finalists, along with Penn State's Saquon Barkley and Stanford's Bryce Love.

[20] Following the final game of the season against Wisconsin's rival Minnesota, Taylor won his eighth Big Ten Freshman of the Week award.

[25] The NCAA does not include bowl-game stats for the period Dayne played, so Taylor is the official record holder for freshman rushing yards.

[28][29] He helped the Badgers to a school-record-setting 13 wins, an appearance in the 2017 Big Ten Championship Game, and a victory over Miami (FL) in the Orange Bowl.

[36] Taylor's return, as well as those of many other key members of the 2017 Orange Bowl-winning Wisconsin team, led the Badgers to become ranked fourth in the preseason AP Poll, tied for the highest start in school history.

[39] In the second game, Taylor set a career-high with 253 rushing yards, to go along with three touchdowns, in a 45–14 win over New Mexico.

[49] He received the Doak Walker Award, given annually to college football's top running back.

[55][56] He earned his sixth career Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors for the performance.

[60] Taylor and the Badgers represented the West Division in the Big Ten Championship Game, but fell to Ohio State 34–21.

[61] The team was invited to the Rose Bowl to play Pac-12 champion Oregon, losing 28–27, to end the year at 10–4.

[50] On January 3, 2020, it was announced that Taylor would skip his senior season, and enlist in the that years draft.

[66] Taylor ended his college career at fourth on the all-time FBS rushing-yards list, sixth all time when bowl games are included, with 6,174 yards.

[85] Michael Renner of Pro Football Focus ranked Taylor as being in the best situation to succeed with the Colts.

[86] Taylor was named the Colts backup running back to starter Marlon Mack at the start of the season.

[88] The day after the game, it was revealed that Mack had suffered a torn achilles tendon, leaving Taylor in the starting position at running back for the remainder of the season.

[93] In Week 13 against the Houston Texans, Taylor recorded 135 yards from scrimmage and a receiving touchdown during the 26–20 win.

[119] In the final game of the season, Taylor had 15 attempts for 75 yards as the Colts were upset by the Jacksonville Jaguars 26–11, missing the postseason as a result.

[127][126] From Weeks 4–11, Taylor compiled 100-plus scrimmage yards and at least one rushing touchdown in eight consecutive games, which tied for the longest streak in NFL history.

[128] After the season, the Maxwell Football Club announced that Taylor was the winner of the 2021 Bert Bell Award.

[135] He suffered a high ankle sprain in Week 15 and was placed on injured reserve on December 20, 2022, ending his season.