This is the line between genius and amateur, but this looks a little hackneyed to me. I get that he has a logic behind what he's doing, and I don't know the players and new coaches personally, so I don't know if this is going to be effective, but as an appreciator of gamesmanship, this seems flawed. And my criticisms in this thread are based on this being a tactical fight on his part. Now maybe he's feeling enough pressure inside to make this kind of move. Or maybe he's panicking. Or whatever other way he sees a payoff here. If he's feeling pressure to make a move like this, and it feels to him like a necessary move to him, then so be it. But it all seems like such small potatoes that I'd like to think that he wouldn't need to make a move of this sort in an attempt to manage perceptions. Basically, if he thinks a small potatoes move like this is strategic, I'm skeptical of his game. I'd almost rather this be just an ego problem for him.bdkipe wrote:Everyone here has some pretty good takes on this. Some are from the side of those who have worked in journalism, some from those who are willing to let the staff settle in through the Spring Game before they cast judgement, here is my own take:
Taggart is not stupid or tone-deaf, not by any stretch. Far from it. This is a very calculated message he is trying to get out to his team. The man has won virtually every press conference, interview and public meet-and-greet he has been at since he accepted the job. He isn't just magically changing out of character and a taking a sudden right turn.
There is a reason he is making a seemingly big deal out of this, a reason he is letting his temper and four-letter words come out in certain interviews regarding this. There is a message he is trying to send and I think we might be missing the forest for the trees. This coach wants his team to come together and fight perception and he is leading the charge in a very public way, fighting perception.
That is just my own opinion.
Here is the only way this makes sense for him, and I guess it's possible: the team and the coaches and people close to the program have come to him to say they are tired of Grief. They don't want him in the interview room. They don't want him waiting outside the stadium. They don't want to talk to him period. And he's such an a-hole, that they just can't take him. This story is the final straw. So Willie falls in his sword. I'm skeptical of that scenario.
Most likely scenario: "I don't like negative coverage of our football team, and I'm going to send the message that if you're going to criticize our program or our players then you better make damn sure you choose adjectives I can live with."
Or, coach Oderinde is so pissed at Taggart for not sticking up for him that Taggart is scared for his life.