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FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

October 1, 2018

Willie Taggart

Tallahassee, Florida

COACH TAGGART: Big week, big rival week. Excited. Very excited for our guys. Excited for this opportunity this week.

Looking to continue to build off of our success from last week and make improvements where they need to be made.

And looking forward to going out here and playing against a really good football team.

Q. When you watch film, what's holding the running game back from being able to find big plays? Are they there and just missing or is it a matter of they're not quite there yet?
COACH TAGGART: I think some of them are there and we're missing. I think when it comes to the running game it takes all 11 guys on offense to operate as one, to get it done. And when one guy messes up it can mess everything up for you.

But you see some plays there. I think part of it is we're trying so hard to make the big play and not allowing the schemes and how we do things to come to us. We're trying so hard as backs. And you can understand why they want it so bad.

But we gotta understand be patient and understand the blocking schemes and letting the blocks -- our backs can do a better job of setting up blocks. And like I said it takes 11 guys to be on the same page, but we're close.

Q. Cam's fourth-down run, looked like he got hit in the hole. How important, I mean, just how impressive was that run? You guys had to have it.
COACH TAGGART: It was very impressive because earlier in the year we did that and Cam tried to get outside and we lost yardage. And so that was one of those opportunities where you learn from his mistake, and he went in there. And he understood the situation as well knowing that it was fourth and one and he needed the first down.

And he got behind his shoulder pads and went in and got the first down. We always tell our backs, if the O line blocks for zero yards you just won. And he took that mentality and got it for us.

Q. One of the most interesting stats I've seen from you guys this year is your turnover ratio. I think you've forced 13 fumbles and only recovered two. Have you seen that kind of disparity before? And is it just a matter of luck? Is there something more you can do defensively to grab some of those fumbles?
COACH TAGGART: We've got to do a good job of getting to the ball. I think part of being around the ball is huge. So when it's on the ground you have a better chance of getting it.

I think you've also got to understand, I can remember in one game where we tried to scoop and score where we should have just recovered the ball. That's part of, when you hear me talk about playing winning football, it's part of teaching our guys, again, how to play winning football.

Those things happen. Get frustrated. You see it on the ground, we don't get to it. When it's on the ground for us, someone else get to it. We gotta keep working at it and hopefully those things change for us.

Q. First conference win of the season. Guys played amazing. Can you just talk about the mindset of the players and coaching staff and what do you guys need to work on to prepare for Miami?
COACH TAGGART: I wouldn't say we played amazing but we hung in there. We stuck together as a team and found a way to win a ballgame and that was really important for our football team, that they stick together and find a way to win a tough ballgame. And I was really impressed by how our guys did that.

And then to get better, lots of areas where we can improve. We talked earlier running the football. We can be better there, which will be big for us on offense.

Defensively, we can be a lot better in the secondary and not giving up big plays, which kind of hurt us there early in the game. So, a lot of areas to improve on.

Those things we can't do against Miami we've got to do a great job taking care of the football and make sure we don't give up big plays on defense.

Q. A.J. gets the interception. Murray, he scores a touchdown to seal the game. Can you give us some feedback of those players and the skill sets that they bring to the team.
COACH TAGGART: I was more impressed that both of those guys made plays for us, being seniors on the team and making plays when they needed to be made and that was huge. You think about, we've got a group of seniors that didn't necessarily ask for the change that happened and to have a new coaching staff here and for those guys to buy in what we're asking them to do has been very impressive for me. And for those guys to step up and make plays in the game like that says a lot about them and their character and how they feel about Florida State.

Q. When teams are in obvious passing downs have you thought of maybe throwing a third cornerback out there, or do the guys out there just have to do a better job in coverage?
COACH TAGGART: We have to do a better job in coverage. When guys are running free, I don't think that's having an extra DB in the game or not. That's technique, that's missed assignment. And we've got to do a better job from technique and an assignment standpoint and making sure, as coaches, making sure our guys are where they're supposed to be.

Q. Growing up a Florida State fan, do you have any memories from the Florida State-Miami rivalry? And what's it like to be part of that?
COACH TAGGART: It's one of the biggest rivalries in college football. When I was growing up that game pretty much came down to the national championship game there for a while. And, again, I probably said before, I just remember when that week came on, we had a little league game. As soon as that game was over, we were all watching TV to watch the Canes and the Noles play, and it's one heck of a rivalry.

It's going to be physical. You're going to see some big hits. Some big plays. Guys flying around. It's a game you don't necessarily have to get guys fired up for. They understand the importance of this game. And think about here in the state, this is kind of like where it starts when it comes to winning a state championship. It starts with this game here.

So our guys understand the importance. I'm excited about it. This is why you signed up to come to a place like Florida State to play in games like this and we're excited about it.

Q. The defense missed a lot of tackles particularly in the first half. Was it a lack of physicality or lack of technique? Just what was the issue with that?
COACH TAGGART: I think both. Whenever you're missing tackles, it's both of those. It's physicality and technique. And we gotta be better at it and getting more guys to the ball. I think whenever you can get more guys to the ball chances of missing tackles are slim. Making sure we have enough guys running to the football so when a guy do miss somebody else is there to cover up for him.

So I think whenever it comes to missing tackles, it comes down to physicality and technique.

Q. As far as the O line protection was much cleaner than previous games. And Francois was not sacked all game. Do you consider that to Dickerson's return? And what does his impact -- his presence have on the team?
COACH TAGGART: I think we all know Landon is one heck of a football player. To have him back was huge for our offense. But I think overall one guy just doesn't make that happen. I think our offensive line just got better in the ballgame. Each week they're getting better.

We're still not as consistent when it comes to depth and having guys in there playing together enough. But the guys that's playing now they're getting a little better each and every week, and that's what we want from them. And expect for them to do is to continue to get better each and every week.

Q. On A.J.'s interception, he said he saw the tight end signal to the quarterback. Is that what you saw on the play, and is that a matter of a guy paying attention and putting himself in a situation to make a play for the team?
COACH TAGGART: I'll tell you for me it was a really proud moment for me because all throughout the week I'm back in secondary with those guys and constantly in their ear about looking at certain things coming out of the huddle.

And it paid off for him in that game. He was paying attention. He said he saw the tight end talking to the quarterback. And he thought they would probably throw the ball there. When they did, he was shocked and he went and got it.

That was a guy that just locked into the game situation and things before the snap of the ball. And when you are playing football like that and you're locked in, good things can happen for you.

Q. What's something you understood about Louisville about going in?
COACH TAGGART: What's something about Louisville I understood?

Q. Yeah, about the team.
COACH TAGGART: I knew it was tough playing up in Louisville. Whenever you play up there it's tough to play. And I knew Coach Petrino would have his guys ready to play, which they did. And, again, we were going to win in a tough environment, and we knew it was going to be that way. And it was great to see our guys overcome it.

Q. You talked about it a little bit before on the secondary. You guys are also blitzing a lot and doing a lot of things to try to pressure the quarterback. Is there some give and take there? Or do you have to live with some of that? Or are you not happy with how the secondary played?
COACH TAGGART: We've just got to play better. I keep repeating myself, but we've got to play better with technique. I said it after the game Saturday and I said it again; you watch the film, bad technique, guys aren't where they're supposed to be.

We have to, as coaches, evaluate what we're doing and seeing if we're asking them to do too much. If they can do it or not. If they can't then we're not going to do it. But if we can, then we need to demand they're where they're supposed to be.

It comes down to that more than anything, just guys knowing their assignment and being there. And we've got to do a great job demanding they're there or don't do the scheme.

Q. You were talking about how focused A.J. was to pick that up at the last moment of that game. What does it say about your defense and your team that despite the fact that that whole game hadn't really gone their way, they're still locked in in that last moment, last two minutes of the game able to make that play and obviously win this game for you? What does it say that they were still locked in there?
COACH TAGGART: I thought the entire second half, they only had three points in the second half. And we gave up 21 in the first half. That told me our guy was locked in and really focused on what they need to do.

Our defense has been playing well all year, and they've been playing to the end. That's one thing about our team, that our team is not going to quit; they're going to continue to play. And when you continue to play like that, good things happen for you.

So our guys were locked in and took advantage of an opportunity that came our way. And the only way you can take advantage of those opportunities is you gotta be focused and locked in to what's going on.

Q. Going back to the offensive line, this was I believe the first game where all five played throughout the entire game. You talked about having synergy and consistency. What does it mean for the group moving forward that it worked and they were all able to work together for an entire game?
COACH TAGGART: I think if we continue to improve, we're going to see improved play in every area -- up front, whether it's running or pass blocking.

And when you can have guys in there playing together, you can see that improvement a lot quicker. And I think the communication up front comes a lot better when you have guys in there consistent enough. And I think that helped us on Saturday, especially when it came to pass protection.

Q. A lot of talk about the offensive line and their blocking. But in your system, how important is it for the wide receivers to get out and block, especially in some of those jet sweeps and some of those wide plays? Are you seeing what you want out of those guys, and how far away are they from getting it?
COACH TAGGART: I think the receivers have done a good job of blocking on the perimeter. I thought earlier in the year we didn't, but over these last couple of weeks our guys have been physical out on the perimeter doing a good job of blocking. And it is important, especially when we're trying to get the ball out on the outside.

But I think our receiver group is coming along quite well, especially being as young as we are there. And just seeing how physical they are with other teams secondary when it does come to run blocking. I think we can see more of them blocking out there. We get the ball and have some big runs for us so we can see those things.

And like I say we're close, and we have some good runs in that game and we've just got to be more consistent with it. I will say this, too, when it comes to running, we gotta start fast.

Some of these games we've been behind. And that doesn't help you when it comes to the run game and you don't get as many attempts as you want to. So we can play better, start faster, and I think we get more opportunities to do those things.

Q. It seemed like Cole Minshew had the best game he's had so far this season. Just how nice is it having him healthy and what does he bring to the table when he's healthy?
COACH TAGGART: I think what's happening with Cole now is he's trying to get into football shape. Since I've been here he hasn't practiced a lot, not much in the spring and not much in training camp. Now he's starting to get himself in football shape.

And each week he's gotten a lot better and he's playing a lot more now. So the more reps he gets, the better he is. And, again, I think it's more of him getting into football shape which is helping. And it's helping our football team.

Q. With Cam, it seems like he's gotten better at pass blocking; he had a couple really nice pickups against Louisville. Where have you seen him in that phase?
COACH TAGGART: He's been big time in it. I think as a back that's a want-to thing. You gotta want to do it. And Cam take pride in it. I thought he did a great job on Saturday stepping up in there. Louisville blitzed quite a bit.

Stepping up and making some of the blocks that he did and allowing Deondre to throw the ball was huge. And that's so critical in the passing game. Our backs got to be like offensive linemen in helping us in that.

And it was great when you have backs that's big enough, strong enough and willing to go in there and get physical when it comes to pass protection. And, again, he's done an outstanding job with that for us.

Q. Live, it looked like Deondre had a really nice game especially in the second half. After reviewing and watching, what did he do well, what did it look like to you and what kind of progress did he make?
COACH TAGGART: I found the first half it was a mixture of a couple of things, couple of throws he missed. I'm not going to get into -- anyway, he missed a couple of throws there. But then he settled down a little bit there in the second half and started executing the offense.

But he was really good in the locker room. He was really good on the sideline, talking with his guys, talking to them about not looking at the scoreboard but playing one play at a time. You constantly heard him saying that every possession that we started the ball, it was just a great job of talking to his teammate and keeping them locked into what they had to do.

And then when he made that pass play to Terry, I think that really opened up some things for us and got everybody excited and fired up to play ball.

Q. Another guy that might be getting into game shape is Marvin. Seems like there were times in that game where I know he didn't have huge stats, but looked like he was making his presence known repeatedly. Are you starting to see him be the guy you guys hoped he would be?
COACH TAGGART: Yes. And we know Marvin's going to have a hell of a season for us. He's just one of those types of individuals that he's going to work his tail off to get himself in the best position that he can be in to have success on the football field.

His rehab and the way he came back was very, very impressive the way he worked to get himself back ready to play football. Tells you how important it is for him and how important it is to help his teammates. To see a big guy out there playing like that and running to the ball is always an impressive thing to see on the football field. When you have guys like that, big things can happen for you.

Q. Have you ever been part of a team that's pass-first? As a play caller is it any different of a rhythm when that seems to be working the best for your offense?
COACH TAGGART: No, I think the reason it's working is because we're trying to run the ball. And you've got guys down in the box trying to stop the run. So that's allowing us to throw the ball a little more. And our receivers are doing a good job of taking advantage of it when we do throw the ball. I do think that's helping us tremendously. You've got guys trying to play man coverage on us.

And we have some talented receivers that can get open and we have a quarterback that can get them the ball. When we do that, our guys are taking advantage of it. But I don't think, if we're just sitting back just throwing the ball every single play, that's going to be a recipe for success for us.

I do think us trying to run the football has helped us. And I think everybody knows we want to try to run the football. So that's why they're in there.

But it's good that when we don't run the ball that we can throw it. So I think that's a good thing. And last week was again a step in the right direction for us not to give up sacks. And to be able to complete passes like we did in that game was big for us offensively and it's going to continue to be big for us.

Q. In the first half you mentioned that Deondre missed some throws. Was that due to him not realizing that the offensive line was giving him time to throw; seemed like he had a little bit of happy feet in the first half?
COACH TAGGART: I think it was because of a lot of pressure. They were bringing a lot of pressure. And he had to move his feet sometime because of the pressure. And I know there one time on third down, he had Noonie coming across and he kind of -- he didn't step and throw the ball. He didn't have to retreat. He was retreating back. He didn't have to, but I think he felt the pressure coming before the snap and just standing there, which you usually do sometimes, standing there making the throw. He didn't on that one. But I can't think of really any more that he just flat out missed, other than some things that probably should have been called that didn't get called.

Q. Anything that D.J. should be doing more on those punt returns, seemed like the one that hit Grant but then there's another one that might have been close, too, anything he needs to be doing more of?
COACH TAGGART: The one that hit Grant, he should do a lot more than what he did. First of all, he's got to see -- gotta see the ball off the punter's foot and see that was a short kick. As soon as he sees that, he has to let his teammates know. They were looking at him as they run down, let them know the ball is short. He didn't do a good job of letting them know there. It's got to be now. He waited for so long.

And by the time he waited, the ball was down on him and it was too late. I thought after that he did a great job of getting those guys to get away. And the one that you speak of, just like the ball was chasing the kid; he was trying to get away, it was following him.

But, yes, that's something he's got to be, that's his job. And he's got to be great with that. It all starts with seeing the ball off the punter's foot and knowing that the ball was short. So he can call a pita (phonetic) call, to get guys to run away. He's got to ball to where the ball is and where they need to move away from. And our guys have to make sure they're seeing the returner, so they can respond.

Q. Special teams question. On kickoffs with the new rule where you can fair catch it anywhere and get it on the 25, is there any kind of guidance for those guys on the back or just a judgment call, if they're fielding it around the goal line, five-yard line, what are you telling those guys on returns?
COACH TAGGART: When the ball is so far in the end zone, we're not running out of the end zone. And our off returner is going to get there to make sure our returner don't take the ball out of the end zone.

And if you kick it inside the 10-, 5-yard line, we're going to return the ball. We've been getting kicked deep in the end zone and hadn't had a lot of opportunities to run. And we had a couple this year, but not a lot.

Q. Do you have much relationship or do you know Coach Richt at all? I know he was here while you were playing, I don't know if your paths would have crossed, but have you met him -- I'm sure you've met him -- but have you talked to him and do you know him well at all?
COACH TAGGART: I have met him. I know Coach Richt, wouldn't say know him well, but I know him, been knowing him a long time because I've been a fan when he was OC here, from that standpoint. And we've talked a couple times since I've been the head coach here at meetings and we talked on the phone a couple times. So, yeah.

Q. Derrick Kelly, has he been able to return to practice, what's his outlook?
COACH TAGGART: Derrick is getting a lot better. I would say if I had to put it on him, I would say he's one of those day-to-day guys. He's coming back. I'll tell you what, I appreciate all these guys. They're so eager to get back out and help their teammates. And they're doing a great job at rehab and being aggressive with their rehab to try to get back on the football field to help their teammates out.

You asked me last week if I thought that Derrick would be able to play this week. I would have said no. But watching him yesterday and moving around, he's further ahead than we thought he would be.

Q. Miami's quarterback N'Kosi Perry, did you recruit him being from Ocala, do you know him at all?
COACH TAGGART: I don't. No, I don't. But he's a phenomenal athlete. Really good quarterback. Very skilled with running the ball and throwing the football and seemed like he's really sparked their offense since he's been in there.

Q. In the first half, there was the play where a defender looked like he jumped offsides?
COACH TAGGART: You saw that one too? (Laughter).

Q. Did you get an explanation what they saw --
COACH TAGGART: He said he got back. Ref told me he got back in time.

Q. As a coach, is there something in your mind where you say, okay, I have to be vocal about this? Or do you just ask and move on? Do you find it beneficial to maybe be demonstrative?
COACH TAGGART: No, I think there's nothing you can do. You just hope they do a good job at what they do. That's all you can count on. And hope your guys do a good job not getting penalties. And you just hope they do the best that they can do. It's all you can do. They've got a job and want to do the best that they can.

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