Florida State Must Turn To Willie Taggart With Jimbo Fisher Gone

Jimbo Fisher is reportedly bolting Tallahassee, leaving Florida State to take the head coaching job at Texas A&M. That puts the Seminoles in an awful position, as many of the top potential coaching targets have already filled other positions. With that in mind there is only one man Florida State should focus its attention on: Oregon head coach Willie Taggart.

Taggart just finished his first season with the Ducks and put together a disappointing 7-5 record. But injuries serverely hampered his team and he had to rely on true freshman Braxton Burmeister at quarterback. Despite a brutal year, Taggart has managed to put together a top recruiting class for 2018, and we’ve seen him be successful at his two previous coaching stops.

As a head coach at Western Kentucky beginning in 2010, Taggart turned the program from a joke into a solid spot in just three years. He left WKU for South Florida after the 2012 season, and took the Bulls from 2-10 in his first year, to 10-2 in 2016, as the squad improved greatly each season. The guy can coach and has always possessed a great offensive mind.

Taggart is a Florida native and knows the state incredibly well. He recruited it hard when he was at South Florida and has continued to do so at Oregon.

At just 41, Taggart is a young, dynamic head coach and Florida State would be a perfect fit for him. This shouldn’t be complicated for athletic director Stan Wilcox.

With Fisher’s exit, the school needs to make a statement that they’ve found a coach who will be there for the long-term and elevate the program back to national championship contention. Hiring Taggart would send that message.