FSU Football legend compares Willie Taggart to coaching greats

FSU football is anxiously awaiting the start of the Willie Taggart era – as former defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews is putting him in an elite group.

While being on the job for just three weeks, new FSU football head coach Willie Taggart is already being praised for his work from both those in garnet and gold and those across the country who has seen the way he has started to change the culture in Tallahassee – and brought in several top recruits during the early signing period last week.

While Taggart will officially make everything his own following the Independence Bowl against Southern Miss, plenty of Florida State greats and those still around the program are happy with what they have seen so far. You can add former defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews to that group.

After spending 26 seasons as one of the top assistant coaches in all of college football, Andrews remains in Tallahassee and has kept a close eye on the program since leaving following the 2009 season. During a recent interview with the Tallahassee Democrat, Andrews spoke of a recent meeting he had with Taggart – and compared the new FSU football leader to two of the game’s great coaches:

"“I had an opportunity to play under (former Alabama) coach Bryant and then coach under coach Bowden for 26 years,” Andrews said. “They weren’t even close the way they coach or the way they communicated. But when you go right down to the bottom line, they were about accountability, effort, intensity, and toughness. I see that in coach Taggart. I think we’ve got ourselves a mighty good football coach.”"

Wow…that right there is some lofty company to be put into without having coached your first game with the Seminoles yet. However, from what we have seen so far from Willie Taggart, you have to think that he wouldn’t want it any other way and loves when the bullseye is put on him so that he can prove what kind of winner he is.

Next: Noles take quality over quantity in early signing period

FSU football did win a national title in 2013 under their previous head coach, but the program has been stale in many regards for at least the last three seasons since the Rose Bowl loss to Oregon that ended a 29 game win streak. With Taggart at the helm, the thought is that things will get back to a fun, winning and disciplined combo – much as when Andrews was leading the defense.