JACKSONVILLE — Running back Fred Taylor is retiring from the NFL after 13 seasons and nearly 12,000 yards.

Taylor will sign a one-day contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars on Friday so he can formally retire with the team that drafted him ninth overall in 1998.

The ceremony surely will be an emotional one, with family members, friends and former teammates on hand.

The former Florida star spent 11 seasons in Jacksonville and remains the franchise’s leading rusher with 11,271 yards. He ranks third with 286 catches and fourth with 2,361 receiving yards. More telling than his stats was his transition from a shy college kid who seemed to find trouble in Gainesville into a model player who became a team leader and a strong voice for league issues.

Coaches and teammates lauded Taylor as one of the hardest-working players in Jacksonville’s locker room. Media members and team personnel regarded him as the easiest to deal with, a class act on and off the field, regardless of wins or losses.

Taylor spent the last two seasons playing sparingly in New England, where he ran 106 times for 424 yards and four touchdowns.