Willie Taggart has been named head football coach at Western Kentucky University, President Dr. Gary Ransdell and Director of Athletics Dr. Wood Selig announced today. Taggart, currently in his third season as running backs coach at Stanford, previously spent eight seasons as an assistant coach at WKU from 1999-2006 and served as co-offensive coordinator for WKU's 2002 I-AA National Championship team. A standout player at quarterback who set 11 school records for the Hilltoppers from 1995-98, Taggart is one of only four players in WKU's 91-year football history to have his jersey retired. He becomes WKU's 17th head football coach, but only the seventh since 1948.
"I always follow Western Kentucky University, ever since I was in school here," said Taggart. "When I saw this opportunity, I knew this was the opportunity of a lifetime. My wife and I sat around and talked about it and this is a dream come true. Western Kentucky University is in my DNA. One thing about me, you don't have to retrain me in the community. I know where to go. I've always bled red since day one, and I know everything about WKU and I know what it takes to win here. I know what type of athlete we want, and I know what type of direction we want to go."
"We had a great group of candidates for this position, but at the end of the day when we really boiled it all down, there was no one who was a better fit," said Selig. "Willie had been a coach here for eight years before going to Stanford, and then you look at the resurgence at their program at the highest level in I-A football and we felt that Willie could bring that blueprint for success to WKU and help us accomplish similar accomplishments. Winning conference championships, going to bowl games and graduating student-athletes."
Taggart has been instrumental in the development of the Stanford offense and running game. The Cardinal, ranked as high as 14th in the nation by the Associated Press this season, currently have a 7-4 overall record with wins over nationally ranked Southern Cal and Oregon. Stanford leads the Pac 10 in total offense (436.5 ypg.) while ranking second in the conference and 13th in the nation in rushing offense (219.3 ypg.)
With 2,412 rushing yards on the season, Stanford needs 70 team rushing yards against Notre Dame this Saturday to break the school's single-season rushing yardage mark that has stood since 1949 (2,481).
The Cardinal are led by senior running back Toby Gerhart, who under Taggart's tutelage ranks third in the nation in rushing (139.2 ypg.) One of 10 semifinalists for the Doak Walker Award, Gerhart carries a cumulative 3.25 grade point average as a management, science and technology major. He has already rushed for a Stanford single-season record 1,531 yards and 23 touchdowns in 11 games this season, breaking his own single-season rushing record of 1,136 yards set last season.
The Cardinal's bowl appearance this season will mark the school's first since 2001.
Taggart was at the helm of the Cardinal running game that finished second in the Pac-10 Conference in rushing offense in 2008, averaging 199.6 yards a game on the ground. Stanford's season rushing total of 2,395 yards was the third-highest mark in school history. In addition, Taggart's work with Gerhart helped the junior rush for a then single-season school record of 1,136 yards, as Gerhart became just the fifth running back in school history to go over the 1,000-yard mark.
Gerhart had one career start prior to the 2008 season. A tireless recruiter, Taggart was responsible for recruiting Florida, Georgia and Kentucky for the Cardinal along with Riverside County, California.
"I'm very excited for Willie, and also for Western Kentucky University," said Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh. "The Harbaugh family has deep affection for the Hilltoppers. I'm just happy they got a great man, a great coach and a family man in Willie Taggart. I feel like the proud older brother. "It's the same feeling I had when my older brother got the Baltimore Ravens head coaching job. It is not easily put into words, but I have great love and respect for Willie. At the same time, it's sad to see him leave here. [WKU] got the right man for the job. He's an outstanding football coach and teacher, and he is very enthusiastic and definitely loyal. Those are all great characteristics in a leader to lead WKU Football."
Prior to his arrival at Stanford, Taggart spent the previous eight seasons on the WKU coaching staff (1999-2006) and helped guide the Hilltoppers to eight consecutive winning campaigns during the stretch.
He worked with current Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh in his first three seasons of coaching from 1999-2001. Taggart started his coaching career as WKU's wide receivers coach in 1999 before working with the quarterbacks from 2000-06. He was also the co-offensive coordinator in
2001 and 2002, helping lead the Hilltoppers to the Division I-AA national championship in 2002, and was promoted to assistant head coach in 2003.
Under Taggart's guidance from 2003-06, quarterback Justin Haddix set school career records with 8,890 yards of total offense, a 57.1 completion percentage, 50 touchdowns and a 137.28 pass efficiency rating. Haddix also finished his career ranked second all-time on the Hill with 541 completions and 7,929 yards passing.
Taggart helped coach an offensive unit that set school records for points (432), total yards (5,479) and first downs (263) en route to the 2002 NCAA Division I-AA national championship. The Hilltoppers ranked second in the nation in pass efficiency and sixth in rushing, and averaged 38.8 points per contest in four playoff victories.
In Taggart's first year calling plays in 2000, WKU ran for 293.4 yards per contest, leading the Gateway Football Conference and ranking second in the country in the category as WKU claimed the league title and advanced to the quarterfinals of the I-AA playoffs. In his first season in 1999, WKU ranked eighth in the nation and first in the conference in rushing.
Taggart's efforts helped WKU quarterbacks earn all-conference mention in three consecutive seasons - Jason Johnson (2000), Donte Pimpleton (2001) and Jason Michael (2002).
"This is a proud day for me and my family and this university family, to take one that we watched come in as a young, talented young man and grow into an adult and a man that is now prepared to lead this program, a proud program," said Ransdell. "I know we all share that love and affection for Willie and what he means to the young men that he is going to guide in the future."
Taggart also spent his collegiate playing days at WKU (1995-98) and was only the third WKU athlete in the past half-century to hold down the quarterback slot for the Hilltoppers for four straight years. Taggart - who set 11 WKU school records - had his jersey retired on October 23, 1999. He currently is WKU's all-time leader in rushing touchdowns (47), ranks second in scoring (286 points), pass efficiency rating (127.71) and rushing yards (3,997), is tied for third in most 100-yard rushing games (17), and is tied for fourth in touchdown passes (30). His rushing yards were the most in NCAA Division I history at the time for a quarterback.
In each of his last two collegiate seasons, he was a finalist for the prestigious Walter Payton Award which is an honor given annually to the top offensive player in I-AA football. Taggart finished fourth in the balloting in 1997 and seventh as a senior the following year. An All-American as a senior, he was also the 1998 I-AA Independents' Offensive Player of the Year. Taggart was recruited to WKU by Jim Harbaugh to play for his father, Jack.
Taggart graduated from WKU with a bachelor's degree in social sciences in 1998.
As a prep standout at Manatee (Fla.) High School, he was a first team all-state and all-conference selection as a senior after guiding the Hurricanes to the state 5A Championship game. He led MHS to the state title his junior season and helped the school post a 26-4 record during that two-year span while recording more than 3,000 yards passing and 975 yards on the ground.
Taggart and his wife Taneshia have two children, Willie Jr. and Jackson.
The Taggart File
Full Name: Willie Taggart
Hometown: Palmetto, Florida
High School: Manatee
College: WKU, 1998 (B.A., Social Science)
Wife: Taneshia
Children: Willie, Jr.; Jackson
Coaching Career
2007-09: Stanford (Running Backs)
1999-2006: WKU, Assistant Head Coach (2003-06), Quarterbacks (2000-06), Co-Offensive Coordinator (2001-02), Wide Receivers (1999).
Playing Experience
1994-98: WKU - Quarterback
Press Conference Quotes
New WKU head football coach Willie Taggart:
On coming back to WKU:
"I always follow Western Kentucky University, ever since I was in school here. When I saw this opportunity, I knew this was the opportunity of a lifetime. My wife and I sat around and talked about it and this is a dream come true. Western Kentucky University is in my DNA. One thing about me, you don't have to retrain me in the community. I know where to go. I've always bled red since day one, and I know everything about Western Kentucky University and I know what it takes to win here. I know what type of athlete we want, and I know what type of direction we want to go."
On potential criticisms of not having enough coaching experience:
"Age is not a number. You can talk about age all you want, but you can't judge me on my passion, my enthusiasm, my desire and my knowledge of what I've learned over the years here and at Stanford."
On the offense he plans on running at WKU:
"We're going to run the West Coast offense here. It is an offense you can use a lot of different personnel in and a lot of different formations. We are going to use motion, and you are going to see the ball thrown around a lot and you're going to see some guys run the ball a lot. I think we'll all be proud of it."
On his plans for the remainder of Stanford's season:
"I'm actually planning on going back [to Stanford] today and finishing the season. We play Notre Dame this week at Stanford, and then on Sunday I plan on getting on the road and recruiting for Western Kentucky University. I will probably go back for the bowl game. Coach Harbaugh and I will sit down and talk about that. My initial plan is to get to work here. There is a lot of work to be done and recruiting starts next weekend. I want to make sure I'm out on the road in my Western Kentucky gear."
On if he has talked to WKU's players:
"No, I haven't. That will happen at the right time. Right now they are focusing on the season, and I'm hoping that they are locked in and ready to go out and win these last two ballgames. I don't think it's appropriate to do that right now but when it is we will certainly do that."
On if changes will be made to the current WKU coaching staff:
"One thing we are going to do here is always think about people first.
The current staff all have families that you have to consider, and we are going to evaluate all of them and interview them all again. Maybe there will be a couple of guys that stay and maybe not. We are going to go through the process and let it all work itself out."
On potential coaches he will bring in to fill out his staff:
"I have some guys in mind. I have a lot of them. We'll see how it works out. We are going to get the best, most capable guys here at WKU, and we are going to get some good guys in here."
On if he has talked to current WKU head coach David Elson:
"We have. Coach Elson is a good friend of mine, and we worked together side-by-side. We went through a lot together, and we have talked."
On the job he faces at WKU:
"I love challenges. That is part of being a competitor. That is one of the reasons that I took this job, because of the challenge. It was the same thing when we went to Stanford. There was a challenge there. The team was 1-11 and hadn't had a winning season in seven years. You want to talk about a challenge. Going to Stanford and rebuilding a culture and program, and we did it there. We are going to bring the same blueprint that we had there over here to Western Kentucky and get this program back on track."
On his thoughts on WKU's new football facilities:
"I tell you what, I recruit the entire nation and I recruit the state of Kentucky, and every time I make sure I ride by. Being a former player and everything we went through and the facilities we had when I was here, I make sure I ride by and I take a picture every time I ride by. I talk with my former teammates, and we always talk about how it would have been nice to have another side to the stadium and have a locker room where it doesn't rain in. As an alum and a former player, that is one thing that I'm proud of. I feel like I was a part of building that and getting it to the point it is at now. I'm sure a lot of former players are proud of it. So every time I ride by and look at it means the world to me."
What he learned at Stanford...
"Going out there and being around Jim Harbaugh, I learned the little things that makes a program go. When we got there that program was in the grave. I couldn't believe that some of the players played at a BCS school. There was no enthusiasm there, and I think that is one of the big things that we brought to the program. We wanted a competitive environment, and every single practice we make sure it is a competitive environment. We compete in everything that we do, whether it is coaches against players or players against players. But we made it a competitive environment and to this day, when you come out to our practice it is full speed and all out all the time while trying to be the best you can be. I think the little things like that really helped us turn it around at Stanford. It didn't happen overnight and it took time, but the guys believed in it and I tell you what, the enthusiasm they had, it made them want to go out and compete. I think we have a team there now that is willing to compete all the time."
Director of Athletics Wood Selig:
On the decision to hire Willie Taggart:
"We had a great group of candidates for this position, but at the end of the day when we really boiled it all down, there was no one who was a better fit. Willie had been a student here at WKU. If you look at the former WKU student-athletes who are head coaches here now, we have Travis Hudson who has been a phenomenal volleyball coach here for us. We have Mary Taylor Cowles who is doing a great job with our women's basketball program. The model worked with Darren Horn in men's basketball, and it's a model that works. Erik Jenkins is doing great things with our track program, and certainly Coach Feix had great success from being a student-athlete and then becoming our head coach.
So I think this is a system that is proven to be successful. Willie had been a coach here for eight years before going to Stanford, and then you look at the resurgence at their program at the highest level in I-A football and we felt that Willie could bring that blueprint for success to WKU and help us accomplish similar accomplishments. Winning conference championships, going to bowl games and graduating student-athletes. If you can recruit at Stanford you can recruit at any school in the country, and he is one of the best recruiters in the country and has a phenomenal recruiting base, especially in our backyard. We feel the sky is the limit from a recruiting standpoint, and the coaches that we talked to about Willie's background all told us that there is not a better teacher in the game who could teach us all 11 positions on offense or a better motivator of men than Willie Taggart.
We felt like age was going to be well served as he can relate directly with all of our incoming student-athletes and all of our recruits who he is working to get to WKU. We felt like it was a perfect combination of talents and background and what we were seeking at this time at WKU."
On when Coach Taggart will meet with the players:
"We respect our current coaches and the job that our student-athletes have to do right now preparing for the last two games of the season, so we don't want to interfere with their preparation. We are going to withhold Willie from meeting with our student-athletes until after the season. We plan on having a meeting on Friday, December 4 after our final home game on December 3. At that time, we will introduce Coach Taggart to our student-athletes and to the team. We would also like to do something with the local community as well in the Topper Club, perhaps sometime in the month of December and have a reception and get to meet Coach Willie Taggart. That is also a function that we plan to have in the next three weeks."
On Coach Taggart's contract:
"We are working through those details right now. There is nothing that has been finalized at this point, but we have all the major points ironed out and agreed upon. When we finalize the contract we will make it available to everyone."
University President Gary Ransdell:
On his thoughts on the hiring of Willie Taggart:
"This is a proud day for me and my family and this university family, to take one that we watched come in as a young, talented young man and grow into an adult and a man that is now prepared to lead this program, a proud program. I would close before we open it up for questions with one analogy. In 1953, a young man named Jimmy Feix graduated from this university, and 15 years later he was named the head football coach. We have had a lot of great quarterbacks, but the two greatest of all are Jimmy Feix and Willie Taggart. Willie Taggart graduated in 1998 and in 2009, 11 years later, he is the second quarterback to now lead the program as a head coach that he led as a student-athlete. It is the first time that we have hired an alumnus in this job since Jimmy Feix, and that analogy is important to all of us who care deeply about this university family and this football program. I am proud to now share that opportunity with Willie Taggart, and I know we all share that love and affection for him and what he means to the young men that he is going to guide in the future. I am proud of you and thank you."
Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh:
On his excitement for Coach Taggart's new opportunity:
"I'm very excited for Willie, and also for Western Kentucky. The Harbaugh family has deep affection for the Hilltoppers. I'm just happy they got a great man, a great coach and a family man in Willie Taggart. I feel like the proud older brother."
On the emotions involved with seeing Willie Taggart get a head coaching position:
"It's the same feeling I had when my older brother got the Baltimore Ravens head coaching job. It is not easily put into words, but I have great love and respect for Willie. At the same time, it's sad to see him leave here. [WKU] got the right man for the job. He's an outstanding football coach and teacher, and he is very enthusiastic and definitely loyal. Great characteristics in a leader to lead Western Kentucky."
On the similarities between when he took over a 1-11 Stanford team and Taggart taking over at WKU:
"It is very similar, in that Stanford was 1-11 when we took over here. With any team, it's about getting better players. That's always the first key ingredient. I'm not saying go out and recruit better players, but make your own players better. You're going to be coaching them up to make them better. You can't go out and recruit anybody that you bring in who is better than your own guys. Coach Taggart is a great recruiter, great teacher and a great coach. You have the best of both worlds there."
On potential criticisms of Coach Taggart's responsibilities at Stanford:
"Willie's a key component of our running game-planning. We all call plays together. It's kind of been a collaborative thing. He's also responsible for our blitz pickup. We've only allowed six or seven sacks on the season. He's done a phenomenal job with our running backs. When you're a running back coach, you basically have a responsibility for the whole offense, because you're so involved with the pass game and the run game. He's been an integral part of our on-the-field success and probably been our best recruiter. Him going to Western Kentucky is a major obstacle for our program and a huge void to fill."
