by Austin Silvey
CHARLOTTE, NC - In the wise words of an animated meerkat named Timon, you have to put your past behind you. That is precisely the message that Florida State head coach Willie Taggart was trying to send at ACC Kickoff.
"We all came here because of our winning tradition. And we all want to be winners. There's a standard at Florida State that we have and we all want to live up to that. We want to get back to that standard," Taggart expressed to the media on Wednesday.
Prior to the 2018 season, Florida State had been to 36 straight bowl games, an NCAA record. After year one, Taggart has taken a lot of heat and been the subject of much criticism this offseason due to the teams underachievement. They went 5-7 and ended the historic streak of bowl appearances.
There has also been some consternation generated between FSU and Texas A&M after an article that came out from Bleacher Report and highlighted why Jimbo Fisher was much to blame for the mess that was Seminoles football last season. Regardless of the reasons for last year's debacle, Taggart has to get things turned around quickly.
Later he was asked what he thought about Dabo Swinney at Clemson and the powerhouse program he has built there. "Coach Swinney is a good dude. He's a hell of a football coach. He's built a fantastic program," Taggart said.
"If you've watched him from day one, when he started, and the struggles he had, but he stayed true to who he was and he came to build the way that he wanted to and I now know that we can benefit from it."
Taggart undoubtedly hopes to have the same eventual success as he strives to uplift a downtrodden Florida State program and fanbase. But he has to be afforded the time to make that happen. A media member asked him about how he reacts to hearing his name being on the proverbial hot seat.
"You can't be focused on that. You have to be locked in to what you're doing. Again, what is the hot seat? Who put you on the hot seat? We just gotta stay focused on what we're doing."
During the opening press conference he explained how he felt much more comfortable going into his second year at the program saying, "Year two, I have more confidence in our football team, our coaches, our administration, and everything. In year two you know a lot more. Year one is learning experience....Things just seem to be much smoother."
Later in the day, during the breakout session, Taggart was asked what he learned about himself as a coach or person since arriving at Florida State. His answer began to unravel what his message for the upcoming season would be.
"I'm still a good person. I'm still a good football coach. And there's a new season and I've got an opportunity to prove that," Taggart said. "I don't look at necessarily what I learned about myself. I learned about the situation and that I've been here before and then knowing what it takes to get out of it. And I see things going in the right direction in order to get out of there."
In response to a question about their record in 2018, Taggart unveiled his ultimate message.
"We put that behind us a long time ago. Only time we talk about it is when we're asked about it. We put it behind us and it's 2019. I don't think it's fair to our '19 team to keep talking about our '18 team. We learned from our mistakes....Again, '18 is behind us. It's part of our history and we're gonna keep it there."
Nobody carries a heavier burden in the Florida State program than Willie Taggart does heading into the new football season. But as he said himself, 2019 provides an opportunity to prove to people he can win in Tallahassee and that he is the man for the job. In order for him to have any chance at accomplishing his and the teams goals moving forward, he needs the support of a great fanbase and the time to build a culture of winning and accountability in a program that was stripped of that before he got there. They have to leave the past in the past.
I asked Taggart what his message to the fans this year would be to let them know that 2018 is behind them and that this is a new year and a new team. His response was short, sweet, and to the point.
"Whatever you do, don't stay home. Come watch the Noles. We'll be back baby!"
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