Taggart vows to address adversity

TALLAHASSEE — During Florida State coach Willie Taggart’s first day, he said he immediately identified cultural issues plaguing the Seminoles following the bumpy exit of former coach Jimbo Fisher and vowed to resolve them.

As the Seminoles were preparing to face No. 2 Clemson last week, Taggart praised Clemson coach Dabo Swinney for establishing the positive culture and standard of winning he wants to match at FSU.

“Dabo has done a great job of building a culture of how he wanted it and you can see it,” Taggart said. “You go visit the program, you see it by everybody in there. Everybody involved in it. Everything they do is towards winning. It’s paying off for them.”

The Seminoles’ historic 59-10 loss to Clemson Saturday offered a stark contrast between the two programs, highlighting the cultural issues Taggart continues to battle. Some players reverted back to bad habits, getting frustrated and either fighting among themselves or plain giving up.

“It only takes a handful [of guys] that can mess up the whole thing that’s going on,” Taggart said. “We’ve got to address those things and make sure those things don’t continue to happen with this football team, as part of the change of the culture.”

Taggart continues to emphasize the importance of learning how to properly cope with setbacks in order to achieve the team’s goals.

“Adversity introduces a man to himself and our guys [have] got to understand that,” Taggart said. “We’ve got to attack it. Don’t run from it.”

FSU defensive end Brian Burns is one of 20 semifinalists nominated for the Bednarik Award.

Every year, the Maxwell Football Club presents the Chuck Bednarik Award to the nation’s top defensive player.

Burns is attempting to become the first Seminole to win the prestigious honor.

The Fort Lauderdale native leads the Atlantic Coast Conference and is tied for fifth nationally with 9.0 sacks.

He ranks seventh in FSU history with 23.0 sacks and 10th in tackles for a loss (35.5).

The Bednarik Award winner will be named Dec. 6.

“You can see now teams are game-planning around him, and I expect for Brian Burns to continue what he’s been doing for us,” Taggart said. “He’s been a great leader for us.”