When Bay FC midfielder-forward Taylor Huff was in the seventh grade, she pondered much on the existential questions that everyone has to eventually grapple with.
Who am I? Why am I here? What is the purpose of life? For Huff, her Christian faith has given her the foundation and answers for understanding who she is beyond soccer, what gives her life meaning and why she believes God has placed her in San Jose for the time being. Perhaps it’s only fitting that Huff has landed in Silicon Valley, a region known—among other things—for its high achievers.
The 24-year-old Huff likewise has a résumé filled with a what’s what of accolades. Three-time NCAA All-American. National championship winner with Florida State. In the 2025 season, Huff was one of only two rookies in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) to start every single match. Prior to college, Huff led her high school girls soccer team to a state championship in her senior year, racking up multiple State Player of the Year awards and the United Soccer Coaches National Player of the Year honors in the process.
TopDrawSoccer rated her the 68th overall recruit for the 2021 class. It doesn’t stop there. Huff also excelled in basketball, softball, volleyball and track, advancing to the Ohio State Track and Field Championships in the 400 meter run. She even competed in a co-ed wrestling tournament when she was 7 or 8 years old, placing fourth.
“My dad had to have wanted a boy and I was the sacrificial one,” said Huff, smiling.
Small town life
Huff was raised in the central Ohio town of Lucas, population 593. Huff’s family lived on 60 acres of land, encompassing woods and ponds.
I’d always be outside,” she said. “It was kind of like that country lifestyle. It was always going outside and playing, or going to the woods. We’d carve in trees, adventure and do crazy things. I kind of grew up just being able to be in nature and just inviting friends over and being close with their families and their families’ families. I’m thankful for where I was raised— wouldn’t want it any other way.”
Huff has an older sister, Hayley, and a younger sister, Ava. She grew up kicking the soccer ball against the garage with Hayley for hours upon end, a glimpse into her indefatigable work ethic.
“I was at the fields I think just a few days after I was born, because my sister was at training or games,” Huff said.
Though an active sports family, Huff credited her parents, Amy and Zac, for emphasizing and prioritizing academics. She also praised her parents and especially her great grandmother, Garnie, for raising her in the Christian faith.
“My great grandma was probably the most influential person in my faith,” Huff said. “I would spend every single Wednesday with her and she would make me tomato soup and grilled cheese, and I just learned so much from her. She’s like my 93-year-old best friend in my family, and I just learned so much from her. She knew how talented I was, and she knew it was a gift from God.”
In the seventh grade, a precocious Huff began to reflect on the big questions of life. Though surrounded by Christian influences, Huff’s immediate family weren’t a part of a church.
“Around seventh grade when you’re going through middle school stuff, you think about who you are, who your friends are,” Huff said. “In a lot of ways I was lost, not wanting to do what everyone else did. I had a strong morale, maybe, just something in me I guess. So I didn’t really go with the crowd which meant I didn’t really fit in.”
At the same time, Huff said her family was experiencing difficulties as all families do at some point, which led her to further soul searching.
“It led me to ask, ‘What is going on in my life? Who am I?’ Just questioning a lot honestly,” she said. “So later it was my uncle who invited my whole family to church on this random day. I’m like, ‘Sure, why not? What do I have to lose basically?’ From there I started going to this church and ended up giving my life to Jesus (in the eighth grade). I went to a (spiritual retreat) camp and that kind of solidified it in a lot of ways that yes, this is what I believe and this is what I was longing for all my life.”
Identity set, mission clear
After a stellar rookie season with Bay FC, Huff’s second season has challenged her with adversity—and grown her faith in God as well. She suffered a foot injury in May, sidelining her for most of the month. For someone whose career depends on being on the field, Huff could’ve easily responded with negativity. In fact, that’s exactly how she would’ve responded had this injury happened even a year ago, Huff said.
What has happened in the last 12 months? In theological terms—because that’s Huff’s reality—she has grown mature in Christ and is continually being sanctified.
Sanctification is a believer’s continued growth in holiness that should follow conversion. For Huff, it was her spiritual growth in the past year and reliance on Jesus that allowed her to respond to her injury with the proper perspective in light of who she is in Christ.
“This was a new challenge in a lot of ways of how am I going to respond,” she said. “It was also a challenge in a lot of ways of who do you trust, who is (ultimately) in control? A lot of times I would’ve thought, ‘Oh, it’s me,’ because I’ve always been able to bounce right back. But I was really brought to a low place—not mentally or anything—but a humbleness of just knowing who God is, how he’s in control and I’m exactly where I’m at for a reason. I can either be happy about it and be joyful in it and count it all joy.”
With her faith flourishing, Huff has responded well to adversity and is focused on closing out the season on a positive note. It’s been a disappointing season for Bay FC, which was eliminated from the NWSL playoff race on Sept. 27 and has two matches remaining in its 2026 campaign. Huff has two goals and two assists across 22 of a possible 28 games played, starting 18.
Described as a box to box midfielder, Huff has been known to make length of the field sprints and influence the game in both penalty areas, contributing to defense at one end and offense at the other.
“I think the biggest takeaway for me is not really on field, it’s off the field and finding my joy outside of the thing that’s always defined me,” she said. “It was about finding who I am outside of that because I’m so much more than a soccer player and what everyone sees on the outside.”
Huff elaborated in further detail: “I think the biggest thing for me is pureness is what I want to be known for, having a pure heart, that alone, what I do and what I say is between God and I and he knows my heart and a lot of times I can be misunderstood, I’ve just found peace in knowing that if I’m truly doing what is pure, right, lovely, all those things that’s kind of been my goal. And seeking first the kingdom of God is having that goal.”
