Florida State football: No rebuild needed under Taggart

Offense

There are plenty of questions on offensive, but the biggest one is at the most important position on the field. Quarterbacks Deondre Francois and James Blackmon both have arguments for the starting job. It’s up to Taggart to pick his signal caller.

Both of them are capable runners, who had up and down first seasons, with Francois’ coming in 2016, and Blackmon’s coming last year as he filled in for his injured predecessor. He wasn’t awesome, but he was pretty good, as true freshmen go. Whoever Taggart picks should be able to run his offense well, and will have a ton of talent around them.

That talent starts at running back, with one of the most exciting backs in the nation, Cam Akers. Akers was one of last year’s few bright spots and should continue to shine this year. Jacques Patrick, the number two back, would start for most teams, and could be in for a big year, even if he has to split carries.

The receivers should also be very fun if they can find consistency. Nyqwan Murray leads the group and was the best receiver on the team in 2017. He needs to stay healthy, but his ability to make big plays makes him a huge asset.

Behind him is a core of talent that hasn’t proved itself yet. Keith Gavin has all the hype in the world but has never really put it all together. D.J. Matthews is young but fits perfectly as a slot receiver in this offense. George Campbell seems like the last receiver likely to see a ton of playing time, but there’s a solid stable of young, highly touted receivers behind him.

The biggest weakness on this offense is probably up front. They stunk last year, but plenty of production is back, and the coach that contributed to the stinking is gone. In a new system, we should see improvement.

So, about that new system

I’ve talked about it a little bit, but let’s focus on what Taggart likes to do on offense. He’s an up-tempo, true spread, modern offensive genius. The complete opposite from the slow, unwieldy, complicated Fisher offense.

That should benefit just about everyone here. The quarterback will finally be allowed to run the football, especially on designed options. It’ll give backs more space. Defenders won’t be able to load the box anymore. FSU is finally heading into the modern era. That’s great news.