Owls set to close first spring camp with Taggart

When Florida Atlantic wraps up spring camp with its annual scrimmage on Saturday at FAU Stadium, Willie Taggart will be swapping his coaching whistle for a commissioner’s suit.

Tight ends coach Jon Bills and running backs coach Chris Perkins will serve as the head coaches for Saturday’s spring game, which will be a traditional game this year instead of offense versus defense.

Bills and Perkins were tasked with signing two initial “free agents” and selecting 30 players each in a five-round draft before the remainder of the roster was split up during a final free agency period, with Taggart serving as the “commissioner” over the process.

“We did this at Oregon,” said offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Michael Johnson, who’ll be on Bills’ coaching staff for Saturday. “When you divide the team up and the coaches, it makes it competitive. There are still things at stake and you’re trying to win. You put a bunch of competitive guys on opposite sides of the ball, it makes the spring game a little more exciting and enjoyable.”

Bills signed a pair of linemen with his first two free-agent signings, taking starting center Nick Weber and defensive tackle Evan Anderson.

“We wanted it to build it in the trenches,” he said. “We built it from the inside out. The first four or five offensive picks were offensive linemen, because that’s where games are won and lost.”

Perkins opted for a little more “flash” with his first two signings, taking running back Johnny Ford — who’s received praise from multiple coaches throughout camp — and safety Teja Young.

“He has the home-run ability, I couldn’t pass that up,” Perkins said of Ford. “Then you have Teja Young on the defense, he’s like a captain and leader on the defense. He’s that guy who’s back there who can keep everybody going and keep everybody enthused.”

Since Bills was just hired in February, the process helped him learn more about the players who aren’t in his position group.

“Over the past two weeks going into the draft, guys [were] politicking for draft spots,” he said. “After the draft, guys coming up to me saying they’re going to make me pay for not drafting them. It’s been a lot of fun to build those relationships.”

For Taggart, the goal on Saturday remains the same it has been all of March, even with the roster shakeups: execute the gameplan and limit mistakes.

“It gives a lot of guys the chance to play with guys they normally don’t play with,” he said. “If you’re a quarterback playing with the backups and you’re still able to execute plays, it says a lot about your growth and where you’re at. Same at every other position.”

And it’ll also give him the opportunity to see his coaches — and players — from a different perspective.

“It also gives me a chance to see what the coaches are thinking,” Taggart said. “You allow them to go pick the guys, they’ll tell you a lot on how they feel about certain players.”

Saturday’s scrimmage is free to the general public, with a limited number of spectators allowed to attend. FAU Stadium will operate at a limited capacity similar to the fall football season, which was 20%. The game will start at 3 p.m., with gates opening an hour before kickoff.

Face coverings will be required at entrance gates and inside FAU Stadium at all times unless eating or drinking. Seating will be spaced out by 6 feet and will only be allowed in the stickered seats on the stadium’s west side.

“One thing you’ll learn is how people will play in front of fans,” Johnson said. “From what I understand, we’ll have up to 3,000 fans, and so there will be people in the stands. Sometimes that does things positive or negative to people. You’ll get a chance to see how they respond playing in front of people.”