Debt puts ex-Husker in a hole

Former Nebraska football standout Aaron Taylor paid a huge price for the 2007 failure of a flashy, Husker-themed restaurant venture in Omaha, filing for bankruptcy last year.

But now he stands to lose something much more valuable to him than any amount of money: his three national championship rings, four conference championship rings and his Outland Trophy.

All have been scheduled for auction later this month by the bankruptcy trustee to help pay some of Taylor's creditors.

Taylor said Tuesday he hopes everyone understands this is not another case of a former athlete choosing to hawk his trophies and rings for money. He unsuccessfully attempted to shield the memorabilia as personal assets in the bankruptcy case. This wasn't his choice.

And he hasn't given up hope he'll regain possession. With the help of his parents — and recent financial contributions from total strangers among NU's fan base — he hopes to be in the bidding when the auction is held in Scottsbluff on Oct. 31.

“It's disappointing, because these are items that mean a great deal to me,'' said Taylor, a Texas native now living in North Platte. “I didn't want to show disrespect to the university. I feel indebted to them for the education and the experience I was able to have.''

Philip Kelly, the Scottsbluff attorney serving as trustee in the Taylor bankruptcy, said he has a legal obligation to get as much repayment for creditors as possible. The best way to do that, he said, is to auction the items on an open market.

“When you file bankruptcy, every asset you own becomes an asset to be administered,'' said Kelly, a 1972 University of Nebraska-Lincoln graduate who used to sell pop at football games. “That includes his Husker memorabilia.''

The auction and bankruptcy can all be traced to what Taylor calls one of the most humbling experiences of his life: the failure of the Scarlet and Cream Letter Club.

Taylor, Husker teammate Scott Frost and former Nebraska baseball player Aaron Bilyeu opened the big sports bar near 168th Street and West Dodge Road in 2006, hoping to capitalize on Nebraska's love of all things Husker and the names they had made for themselves. It closed about a year and a half later, in a crush of debt.

Not only was the business failure difficult financially, Taylor said, but it also severely strained his close friendship with Frost, the star quarterback Taylor blocked for as part of the 1997 national champions. Taylor said the two last spoke on Jan. 6, 2007.

“I'm not going to lie,'' Taylor said. “This (whole thing) has been awfully difficult.''

Taylor is one of only about two dozen Nebraska football players who can lay claim to having been on all three of Coach Tom Osborne's national championship teams in the 1990s. He capped the 1997 season by also winning the Outland, awarded to college football's top interior lineman.

But college stardom did not translate into success in the pros for the undersized Taylor. He settled in Omaha and went into medical sales.

The championship rings and Outland went into the closet, he said, usually coming out only when Taylor would display them for charity events, paid promotional appearances or autograph sessions.

“I'm not a flashy jewelry guy, or (one to) display my trophies in a shrine,'' he said. “But I liked to give people who hadn't seen them a chance to see them. Those items never would have been obtained were it not for the great fans we have in the state.''

Then with Frost and Bilyeu as partners, and with several other investors that included comedian Larry the Cable Guy (Dan Whitney), they launched the Scarlet and Cream Letter Club.

The gleaming new Husker-themed restaurant opened near the upscale Village Pointe shopping center in 2006, with all new furnishings and fixtures, two 11-by-16-foot TVs among a total of more than 50 overall, and lots of Husker memorabilia, including Taylor's rings and trophy.

A World-Herald reviewer at the time said it was “like a sports bar on steroids.”

Mimicking a sign at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, a sign above the entrance read: “Through these doors pass the greatest patrons in college sports.''

But there obviously weren't enough of them.

Taylor said the business actually ran into problems before it even opened. Rather than rent a retail location, they bought and built their own. Those huge startup costs became too much to overcome, he said, especially when business wasn't as strong as hoped.

There were soon lawsuits from creditors for unpaid bills and liens for unpaid payroll taxes. Most notably, the Nebraska Economic Development Corp. sued Frost, Taylor and Bilyeu after they defaulted on a nearly $1.3 million U.S. Small Business Administration loan for which they were personally responsible.

The restaurant finally closed in October 2007. By then, Taylor had moved from Omaha to North Platte, taking a job as a yardmaster for Union Pacific Railroad. He and his wife have two daughters, one born just a month ago.

Last year, debts incurred from the restaurant failure prompted Taylor to file a personal bankruptcy petition. The Chapter 7 filing specifically listed assets of $5,300 and debts of about $110,000, but that appears to be only a fraction of what he owed.

Subsequent filings in the case mention the $1.3 million economic development loan. A judgment has been entered against Bilyeu in that case, but cases against Frost and Taylor still are pending.

There are other debts, too, with both Frost and Bilyeu on the court's list of creditors. Taylor said he didn't know exactly what his total debt is.

“There are so many numbers out there,'' he said. “It was a big hole.''

In his bankruptcy filing, Taylor was required by law to list all his assets. That's why his filing listed “Championship Rings/Outland Trophy/Other NE items,'' with a value unknown.

As trustee, Kelly inquired about them. There was some discussion of whether Taylor could pay a certain amount of money for the items to keep them out of the bankruptcy case, and Taylor says he was at one time hopeful of reaching an agreement.

But Kelly said that although there were offers back and forth, no agreement was reached. Because it is so hard to place a value on the items, Kelly said, the best way to make sure creditors are protected is to sell them at auction.

Taylor said he understands why Kelly has made the decisions he has, and both men say their dealings have been nothing but civil.

The items are listed on the Web site of the aunctioneer, Helberg and Nuss in Scottsbluff. The sale is set for 10 a.m. Oct. 31 at the Scottsbluff Hampton Inn.

Taylor said that since word of his situation began to get out in the last two days, he's been grateful to have received donations from Husker fans who hope he can buy back the items. Taylor has established a PayPal account, Outland1997@yahoo.com, where he is accepting such donations.

Now, he said, he just hopes there aren't a lot of bidders later this month.

“Because I will definitely be there trying to buy my stuff back.''

World-Herald staff writer Lynn Safranek contributed to this report.