Forks, flags … either way the Seminoles are done

TALLAHASSEE — In the end, the dead end, before his players' locker room tears, all Florida State Willie Taggart could do was make sure Florida players didn't gleefully plant their big Gators flag on the Seminoles emblem at midfield at Doak Campbell Stadium. It was all he had left.

Gone was a winning season in Tallahassee for the first time in 42 years. Gone was a bowl game for the first time in 36 years. Gone was that five-year win streak over Florida, in a 41-14 thumping that wasn't as close as the score.

Those flags were too much for Taggart, though he made sure the players on his 5-7 team stayed out of the trouble. Fine coaching, at last.

"I think when players get involved, that's when you have a riot and all that because they don't necessarily handle it the right way," Taggart said.

He didn't apologize for trying to stop the Gators.

"Again, this is our school. This is Florida State."

It is?

Taggart has a track record of turning around programs. He went 2-10 in his first seasons at Western Kentucky and USF. But this is Florida State, a different kind of deal, and Taggart failed miserably in his debut. Saturday, he was reduced to riot prevention.

In truth, people have been sticking flags in Florida State since opening night, when Virginia Tech came to Tallahassee and pitched a shutout. It really never got much better for Taggart and his Seminoles all season.

Those flags might as well have been forks. Taggart's players didn't want to be the ones to end all the streaks. But they did just that. Hence the postgame tears.

The Gators had their fun, according to defensive back Chauncey Gardner.

What was the message, Mr. Gardner?

"To show that these guys are actually afraid of us and they actually didn't want to be on the same field as us, you could tell going in at halftime, that they knew the game was just going to start turning and spiral out of control," Gardner said.

"I apologize for the season we had," Taggart said. "But we're going to get there. It's not a panic situation."

It's not?

Saturday was more of the same, more spiraling. Gators coach Dan Mullen grabbed the high ground in his first go against Taggart and FSU. Talk about flag planting.

Florida made 536 yards. Florida State made 293. Florida ran for 282 yards. FSU made three more turnovers. It went 1-for-14 on third-down conversions. Seminoles quarterback Deondre Francois might have started his last game for Taggart after completing just 14 of 29 passes with two picks, easily losing the matchup against Florida's Feleipe Franks.

And there were more mental mistakes from FSU, like all season. There was the illegal shift that wiped out that 70-yard TD pass from Francois to Cam Akers, and the unsportsmanlike call against FSU cornerback Stanford Samuels, whose punch extended a Florida touchdown drive. There was Gators receiver Van Jefferson, behind the FSU, open by about 15 yards, for another Florida touchdown grab.

The offseason has started early in Tallahassee.

Once upon a time, in the land without buyouts, Taggart might have been out the door for being a streak buster. But Florida State would owe him nearly $20 million. This from a school that can hardly afford to buy a new athletic director.

Taggart will return, but to what, with what?

"It goes back to evaluation our entire program, our entire football team, and getting the right people to play," Taggart said.

He needs to do some evaluating himself, maybe find someone to run the offense, and we don't just mean James Blackman over Francois – a coach to call the plays. At least Taggart gets a full recruiting cycle. If you live in Florida and are parents of a big, strong high school offensive lineman, that'll be Willie T. at your front door, you back door, in a side window,

"I think a lot of it has to do with recruiting," Taggart said. "I think a lot of it has to do with developing. We had a lot of guys playing who probably weren't ready yet."

Taggart wasn't ready, either. We still don't know if Dan Mullen, who is likely heading to a New Year's Six bowl, can make a three-loss program into a one- or none-loss program. But he's in a better place than Taggart. FSU badly trails Florida. All it took was one Gators win, but facts are facts.

And flags are flags.

Taggart and Florida State pride have been planted but good.

Now it's just a matter if they ever get up.

Contact Martin Fennelly at [email protected] or (813) 731-8029

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