Analysis: Moving assistants to support roles might not be easy

As Willie Taggart evaluates his coaching staff and mulls over potential changes for the 2019 season, one particular option might be more difficult to accomplsh than many of us anticipated.

In the days following Florida State’s season-ending loss to Florida, I hypothesized in a column -- and others have suggested as well -- that Taggart could move wide receivers coach David Kelly into a support staff position, similar to the ones he held under Taggart at Oregon and USF.

Not necessarily because Kelly was failing as a receivers coach, but because he originally preferred to be an off-field, front-office staffer and was only thrust into his current role because Taggart was pressed for time when putting together his original coaching staff and needed Kelly’s help on the recruiting trail.

Here was Kelly's explanation of the decision when he met with the media last August:

"Once we got here, one thing led to another and (Taggart) and I are on this plane flight ... we're on this plane flight out to Seattle to recruit Tre'Shaun (Harrison)," Kelly said. "And all of the sudden he hits me with, 'Well, D.K. You know a little bit about wide receiver, why don't you coach them?'

"I have to be honest, I tried to get out of it initially," Kelly said with a smile. "But Willie Taggart being Willie Taggart, and the respect that I have for him and all, just like always -- that's why he's such a good recruiter -- he finally convinced me after about 30 seconds that, yeah, you'll be the wide receivers coach. I said, 'Hey let's go get this thing.'"

The move made perfect sense at the time, and it likely helped pave the way for Taggart to bring in a top-10 signing class in 2018 despite getting an incredibly late start. Kelly is believed to have played a key role in landing the four-star Harrison and others.

But if Kelly, who began his coaching career 40 years ago as a graduate assistant, really desired to be back in the front office spearheading FSU’s recruiting efforts -- as opposed to being on the field coaching -- then it stood to reason that he could make that move this offseason. Such a change would also allow Taggart to fill that spot with another high-quality receivers coach. It could make the entire staff stronger.

Unfortunately, as was pointed out to me after I wrote the earlier column, that Kelly move might not be possible after all -- at least during this offseason.

Why?

Well, it goes back to that controversial recruiting rule that the NCAA enacted two springs ago -- the one designed to stop colleges from hiring high school coaches in support staff roles as “package deals” with recruits.

Here is the actual text of the rule: