FSU football fans are screaming for change in Tallahassee after 15 games. Here are five reasons Willie Taggart should get a third year.
The 2018 FSU football season was the worst season in my 40 years on this earth. Man, if you think just watching the games was terrible, writing about them was even worse I can assure you.
There were so many questions I had during the season I lost count. How in the world could the offense be that terrible?
Why was Deondre Francois still playing when he was a shell of the average quarterback prior to getting hurt against Alabama?
How did the FSU defense regress from the 2018 season, and how on earth were special teams so terrible when I didn’t think it was possible for them to get worse?
Recruiting fell off a cliff after the season started and lack of team organization during games was used to negatively recruit against the Noles.
I do think a large amount of that was Willie Taggart having to hire guys that were not his first choice coupled with never working together before as a staff from an offensive standpoint.
There was absolutely no synergy anywhere, not to mention there were a lot of bad apples on the team the coaching staff couldn’t get rid of because of the terrible APR situation that was inherited.
Willie Taggart had a great offseason despite all those things taking place and was able to hire a few of the coaches he originally wanted to hire. I know the team is 1-2 and there are some things obviously that still need to be worked out **coughs** defense.
I know a lot of FSU football fans want Willie Taggart gone, but here’s five reasons he should get a third year in Tallahassee barring the team going 5-7 or worse again.
Special Teams Improvement
One of the most dysfunctional phases of the program in 2018 was special teams. This unit was already one of the worst in the country even under the old regime, but the 2018 version was like hold my beer son.
One of the biggest mistakes Taggart made was hiring Alonzo Hampton to coordinate special teams and they were an unmitigated disaster.
What did Taggart do? He fired Hampton and shuffled the coaching staff so that Mark Snyder would take over those duties.
It’s still a small same size after three games, but I think it’s safe to say FSU special teams are light years better than a year ago.
They are smartly using the “fair catch” rule to their advantage instead of bringing kickoffs back from their end zone and getting tackles at the 13 yard line.
Punt return coverage has been MUCH better through three games as they’ve only allowed four returns on 18 punts for two yards.
The kickoff return coverage has been much better aside from the 35 yard return Virginia had Saturday night.
Willie Taggart has been able to improve this phase of FSU football rather quickly.
FSU Offense
Willie Taggart called the plays last season and realized he needed to give up those duties to attend other matters. He also realized he need to make a change.
I’m not sure if former coordinator Walt Bell was told to look elsewhere for a job or not, but the fact he left for UMASS was all Taggart needed to get the guy he wanted to hire in the first place.
FSU offensive coordinator Kendal Briles and offensive line coach Randy Clements have brought organization and almost immediate improvement to the FSU offense.
That’s with a patchwork offensive line and new quarterback who’s on his third offensive coordinator in three years.
FSU is averaging 33.3 ppg and 5.76 ypp while converting third downs 38 percent of the time.
That’s a 53 percent increase in scoring per game, 12.5 percent increase in ypp and 32 percent increase on third down conversions compared to 2018.
The offense at least looks capable against a solid defense in Virginia and that’s with FSU leaving a lot of plays on the field Saturday night.
Again, that’s another improvement Taggart has quickly made.
Recruiting
FSU football currently has the No. 9 recruiting class in the nation after going 5-7 last season.
That’s about as good as it gets given the situation and admittedly the Noles will need to win a few games to keep this recruiting class intact.
However, if Willie Taggart isn’t given a third year who in the world would FSU football replace him with?
Is there another head coach out there that could have done what he and his staff where able to do on the recruiting trails after going 5-7?
He may never turn this thing around, but the fact he was able to do that suggests he could field an elite recruiting class given the time to make all the necessary changes needed to this program.
Frankly, 15 games in isn’t long enough and FSU will need elite recruiting classes if they plan to compete against Clemson in the next few years.
Now, if FSU football continues to lose games it likely won’t matter, but letting Willie Taggart go would definitely dismantle this recruiting class.
Would whoever they hire be able to pick up the pieces fast enough to not prolong the long road back to prominence?
I doubt it.
Defense
Listen, the biggest issue on this team is the FSU defense by a mile. The fact of the matter is if this defense were even as good as last season they’d likely be 3-0 right now and none of this fire Willie Taggart chatter would even exist.
Florida State Seminoles Football
Willie Taggart was already trying to make a move to address the defense BEFORE the season began with trying to bring on Jim Leavitt as a defensive analyst.
Those plans fell through, but Taggart got the move done after the second game of the season to bring Jim Leavitt onboard.
The Virginia game was the best the FSU defense had looked all season prior to melting in the fourth quarter. Was it the Jim Leavitt effect?
I doubt it, I think it was more Harlon Barnett going back to more familiar 4-3 stuff they used last season.
The fact of the matter is Willie Taggart has already made a potential move to address the FSU defense just as he did the offense and special team units.
Leavitt is who he wanted to hire originally and it’s like the writing is on the wall for Harlon Barnett regardless of how they finish the season.
I know having Jim Leavitt on staff as an analyst should make the defense better moving forward as I’m sure he’ll contribute a bit more than just analyzing film.
Willie Taggart’s Buyout
Listen, FSU football can’t really afford to fire Willie Taggart after this season as his buyout is 17 million dollars.
Not to mention his agent is Jimmy Sexton who’s an agent to the stars of college football coaches. If FSU were to get rid of Taggart, wouldn’t you think they’d likely have to work with Sexton again with their next hire?
Could FSU afford to pay the buyout and then pony up more money to get a proven coach in Tallahassee?
Would they be willing to go the route of making a risky hire with someone with no real head coaching experience?
I doubt it.
The next few games will be telling for FSU football. If the Noles can somehow win their next two games that would be optimal.
They’d take their whipping from Clemson and be at 3-3 with six games remaining on the schedule. If they beat Louisville and NC State next I think the odds of beating Wake Forest, Syracuse, Miami and Boston College go up exponentially.
This team has proven they can play good football this season, it’s just a matter of believing and executing for four quarters.
Final Thoughts
Willie Taggart has shown the ability to make adjustments regarding problem areas with the offense and special teams.
He’s already making an adjustment with the defense and has started the process of holding players accountable for their actions.
I think there’s an argument to be made he should have done these things sooner, but it was good to see him sit upperclassmen Levonta Taylor against Louisiana-Monroe and DJ Matthews against Virginia.
There’s at least one more upperclassman who’s on the verge of sitting it seems, and I’d sit him in a heartbeat after how he’s played this season.
Yes, I’m talking about linebacker Dontavious Jackson. I think playing the younger players could help keep this 2020 recruiting class together as it shows them you can get on the field early if you handle your business.
I know FSU football fans are not used to losing even though it’s been happening a lot over the past three seasons. However, I think firing Taggart after two seasons would do more harm than good at the moment.
He’s shown he knows how to assess things and make adjustments at previous stops and it looks like he’s doing the same in Tallahassee.
The only thing is it’s taking a bit longer than most anticipated. FSU isn’t going to compete for a ACC title in the next couple of years anyway, so why not show a little more patience to see if Taggart can get this thing turned around?