WhoShotCha
Superstar
That boy moving like a WR
.. Would be a huge pull considering we only offered a few weeks ago and we just lost Izzo. #WestsideNoles
Somebody, Anybody.....#DoSomething: 2019 FSU Seminoles
- Thread starter Lucky_Lefty
- Start date
That boy moving like a WR
.. Would be a huge pull considering we only offered a few weeks ago and we just lost Izzo. #WestsideNoles
jwonder
Superstar
Seems like there will be alot of freshmen playing this year especially at WR.
That boy moving like a WR
#WestsideNoles
Hell yeah! Homie lined up on the perimeter like a wide receiver. He's gonna be a problem.
WhoShotCha
Superstar
Good. Jimbo was way too scared to play young talent. But then be the same muhfukka talking about "best player plays, don't matter how long you've been here".
I was done with Jimbo the year he had Kermit and Bobo as the primary receivers with Rudloph.
Good. Hopefully they'll be some on the defensive side as well.. Woodbey n Samuel..
jwonder
Superstar
Man I'm so glad moving forward with an updated staff. shyt is crazy. I called for Willie Taggart last year and we got him this year. So fukking happy we got him.
Listen here: starts @ 3:20
Harlon Barnett talks about his move to Florida State - January 12, 2018
Barnett chose FSU to 'do something different and stretch myself'
Harlon Barnett explains to Lansing radio station why he chose FSU
Florida State defensive coordinator Harlon Barnett wanted to "stretch" himself and push for a new challenge.
That is why he left what was comfortable and safe -- his co-defensive coordinator job at Michigan State -- for a position on the Seminoles' staff. The former Michigan State standout spoke with The Drive with Jack on 92.1 FM The Team in Lansing on Friday. In the interview with the radio program, Barnett explained how he first got in touch with Willie Taggart, why he chose the Seminoles and more. The interview is transcribed below, or you can listen to the segment here.
Can you explain the process that’s taken you to Tallahassee?
Harlon Barnett: “Oh man, it seems like it was three weeks ago, but it was actually a week ago today that the decision was made. After our game out in San Diego, the very next day, I get a text from one of the guys on Coach Taggart’s staff, a guy I knew through recruiting circles. And he told me Coach Taggart would like to talk to me about the D.C. job at Florida State. So it kind of snowballed from there. I also informed Coach Dantonio, and told him I would also like him to call Coach Taggart and just try to do it the right way out of respect for Coach D. Did all of that. Fast forward, I end up going down there the following Wednesday, do an interview, flew back on Thursday, had an offer and then Thursday night was a rough night trying to figure out what I wanted to do. Friday morning, made the calls to the appropriate coaches and let them I know I was going to be heading down to Florida State. It had nothing to do with anybody at Michigan State in a bad way or anything like that, it was just a chance for me to stretch myself Jack. That’s how I looked at it. I had been at Michigan State for 11 years and with Coach D 14 total and it was an opportunity go out and do something different and stretch myself a little bit."
You said it was a hard night...what made it difficult and what gave you pause?
HB: “Just being a Spartan. Just being a Spartan and how good coach Dantonio has been to myself and my family, that was the tough part. The easy thing would’ve been to stay, obviously. But that was the toughest part. The money part, that’s not a big deal to me, to be honest with you. It never has been because I know that will come. Just being so close to Coach D for so many years and him taking care of me and my family, and me taking care of him in some ways with the job that I did. That was the tough part. It’s never easy to break off a relationship like that, one that was on good terms and is still on good terms. It was just tough.”
You said money was not the factor...was there any sort of a matching opportunity where Michigan State could’ve changed your mind?
HB: “I don’t know. Michigan State stepped up, so I’m going to say no, because they did step up. It wasn’t like they didn’t step up, I wouldn’t say that at all. They did step up. It was just a chance for me to go out there and stretch myself and take on something different and something new. I’m not getting any younger. I felt good about, and I told this to Coach D, I felt good about where Michigan State was. Now for me to do something like this last year, not that I would’ve had the opportunity, but after 3-9, to leave, that would’ve been cowardly to me. Going 10-3 with a very, very young team coming back, I felt good about where Spartan football was and the future of Spartan football without me being a part of it. That helped as a deciding factor as well.”
What was your previous relationship with Willie Taggart?
HB: “Never met him in my life. Never met him. Through one of his assistants, because when I said ‘well what is your connection to me, why?’ He said ‘well I know Michigan State’s defense has been good over the last several years or what have you.’ That was one. And two, even though I was a co-coordinator, he found out I was the one calling the defense and that’s what triggered him to want to get in touch with me and interview me. That was how it went down. Again, I didn’t even know Willie Taggart. I didn’t know much about him. So obviously by him searching me out, I started doing a little research of my own, and found out some good things about him as well.”
With the co-coordinator format...is that something you see more teams doing or does the single coordinator format work better?
HB: “What’s better or worse, I really can’t say. We were one sack away from being the No. 1 rush defense in the country, Mike and I were talking about that the other day. We had been together so long, I understood why Coach D did it as far as the continuity of our staff and how long we’ve been with him, Mike and I both. So when Pat left, and he had always -- Pat had been hot for several years before taking the Pitt job -- when we would have our individual meetings with him, he would say ‘if Pat ever leaves, I would make you and Mike co-coordinators.’ So he stuck to his word, he did what he said he would do. Because of being together for so long and having the respect for both of us, what we did, he thought that was the right thing to do and I don’t disagree with that. If a guy is coming in and creating a whole new staff and that kind of stuff, then I can see why he would go with a single coordinator, if all this makes sense. So I get with Coach D, where he was coming from, it’s a continuity thing, a respect thing. I respect that and if you can make it work, that’s good. And it worked out good for us.”
Of what are you most proud of your stay in East Lansing
HB: “My connection with the players, because I do it for them. A major reason why I do what I do is, obviously, you want to make a living and all those type of things. The players are why I coach. I know this, and not to sound too deep, and I always preface this, this is bigger than me. This is a God thing for me. And so it’s about the players and helping develop them from young men into men. So when I get responses from them or texts or DMs, things like that, even from guys that I did not coach on a daily basis, that’s when I know I must be having an impact and doing a decent job.”
What is it about FSU football that’s intriguing to you?
“Like you said at the top, they’re a national brand that has put themselves in that position with the way they’ve played over the last 30 years or so. In a state where football is one of the major deals in the United States, high school football is big, so it’s a prime recruiting area. They get a lot of talent year in and year out down there -- not that we didn’t at Michigan State, because obviously that’s my alma mater -- but it’s a place that seems prime and ready to go and strive for a national championship, like we were at Michigan State. I don’t feel like I’m taking a step back. It’s moving across and trying to do something here that we were steady trying to do at Michigan State, which is to win it all. If you’re not in this business to win it all, you shouldn’t be in it obviously, aside from what I said before with the young men, but as far as on the field, your mindset should be to try to win it all. And I feel like this is a place that strives to do that and can do that.”
A lot of great coaches never get the opportunity to run their own program. Is that your dream?
HB: “Yeah, that is something that I would like to do. I would like to be a head coach some day. I feel I’ve got some things that I can bring to the table, yeah it is. My thing, my father used to say, ‘if you’re going to play, play.’ Meaning, go hard at every single thing you do. If you’re going to go for it, then go for it. So if I’m going to be a coach, then let’s go all the way to the top and try to be the best at it. I’m going to go for being a head coach and we’ll see what happens. Now is that the be all, end all for me? No. I’ll let God’s timing work in this thing, but I know it’s something that’ been set before me to do and I look forward to that opportunity when it comes.
Get FSU news sent directly to your inbox! Click for FREE FSU newsletter!
Start you Noles247 7-Day FREE Trial
Harlon Barnett talks about his move to Florida State - January 12, 2018
Barnett chose FSU to 'do something different and stretch myself'
Harlon Barnett explains to Lansing radio station why he chose FSU
Florida State defensive coordinator Harlon Barnett wanted to "stretch" himself and push for a new challenge.
That is why he left what was comfortable and safe -- his co-defensive coordinator job at Michigan State -- for a position on the Seminoles' staff. The former Michigan State standout spoke with The Drive with Jack on 92.1 FM The Team in Lansing on Friday. In the interview with the radio program, Barnett explained how he first got in touch with Willie Taggart, why he chose the Seminoles and more. The interview is transcribed below, or you can listen to the segment here.
Can you explain the process that’s taken you to Tallahassee?
Harlon Barnett: “Oh man, it seems like it was three weeks ago, but it was actually a week ago today that the decision was made. After our game out in San Diego, the very next day, I get a text from one of the guys on Coach Taggart’s staff, a guy I knew through recruiting circles. And he told me Coach Taggart would like to talk to me about the D.C. job at Florida State. So it kind of snowballed from there. I also informed Coach Dantonio, and told him I would also like him to call Coach Taggart and just try to do it the right way out of respect for Coach D. Did all of that. Fast forward, I end up going down there the following Wednesday, do an interview, flew back on Thursday, had an offer and then Thursday night was a rough night trying to figure out what I wanted to do. Friday morning, made the calls to the appropriate coaches and let them I know I was going to be heading down to Florida State. It had nothing to do with anybody at Michigan State in a bad way or anything like that, it was just a chance for me to stretch myself Jack. That’s how I looked at it. I had been at Michigan State for 11 years and with Coach D 14 total and it was an opportunity go out and do something different and stretch myself a little bit."
You said it was a hard night...what made it difficult and what gave you pause?
HB: “Just being a Spartan. Just being a Spartan and how good coach Dantonio has been to myself and my family, that was the tough part. The easy thing would’ve been to stay, obviously. But that was the toughest part. The money part, that’s not a big deal to me, to be honest with you. It never has been because I know that will come. Just being so close to Coach D for so many years and him taking care of me and my family, and me taking care of him in some ways with the job that I did. That was the tough part. It’s never easy to break off a relationship like that, one that was on good terms and is still on good terms. It was just tough.”
You said money was not the factor...was there any sort of a matching opportunity where Michigan State could’ve changed your mind?
HB: “I don’t know. Michigan State stepped up, so I’m going to say no, because they did step up. It wasn’t like they didn’t step up, I wouldn’t say that at all. They did step up. It was just a chance for me to go out there and stretch myself and take on something different and something new. I’m not getting any younger. I felt good about, and I told this to Coach D, I felt good about where Michigan State was. Now for me to do something like this last year, not that I would’ve had the opportunity, but after 3-9, to leave, that would’ve been cowardly to me. Going 10-3 with a very, very young team coming back, I felt good about where Spartan football was and the future of Spartan football without me being a part of it. That helped as a deciding factor as well.”
What was your previous relationship with Willie Taggart?
HB: “Never met him in my life. Never met him. Through one of his assistants, because when I said ‘well what is your connection to me, why?’ He said ‘well I know Michigan State’s defense has been good over the last several years or what have you.’ That was one. And two, even though I was a co-coordinator, he found out I was the one calling the defense and that’s what triggered him to want to get in touch with me and interview me. That was how it went down. Again, I didn’t even know Willie Taggart. I didn’t know much about him. So obviously by him searching me out, I started doing a little research of my own, and found out some good things about him as well.”
With the co-coordinator format...is that something you see more teams doing or does the single coordinator format work better?
HB: “What’s better or worse, I really can’t say. We were one sack away from being the No. 1 rush defense in the country, Mike and I were talking about that the other day. We had been together so long, I understood why Coach D did it as far as the continuity of our staff and how long we’ve been with him, Mike and I both. So when Pat left, and he had always -- Pat had been hot for several years before taking the Pitt job -- when we would have our individual meetings with him, he would say ‘if Pat ever leaves, I would make you and Mike co-coordinators.’ So he stuck to his word, he did what he said he would do. Because of being together for so long and having the respect for both of us, what we did, he thought that was the right thing to do and I don’t disagree with that. If a guy is coming in and creating a whole new staff and that kind of stuff, then I can see why he would go with a single coordinator, if all this makes sense. So I get with Coach D, where he was coming from, it’s a continuity thing, a respect thing. I respect that and if you can make it work, that’s good. And it worked out good for us.”
Of what are you most proud of your stay in East Lansing
HB: “My connection with the players, because I do it for them. A major reason why I do what I do is, obviously, you want to make a living and all those type of things. The players are why I coach. I know this, and not to sound too deep, and I always preface this, this is bigger than me. This is a God thing for me. And so it’s about the players and helping develop them from young men into men. So when I get responses from them or texts or DMs, things like that, even from guys that I did not coach on a daily basis, that’s when I know I must be having an impact and doing a decent job.”
What is it about FSU football that’s intriguing to you?
“Like you said at the top, they’re a national brand that has put themselves in that position with the way they’ve played over the last 30 years or so. In a state where football is one of the major deals in the United States, high school football is big, so it’s a prime recruiting area. They get a lot of talent year in and year out down there -- not that we didn’t at Michigan State, because obviously that’s my alma mater -- but it’s a place that seems prime and ready to go and strive for a national championship, like we were at Michigan State. I don’t feel like I’m taking a step back. It’s moving across and trying to do something here that we were steady trying to do at Michigan State, which is to win it all. If you’re not in this business to win it all, you shouldn’t be in it obviously, aside from what I said before with the young men, but as far as on the field, your mindset should be to try to win it all. And I feel like this is a place that strives to do that and can do that.”
A lot of great coaches never get the opportunity to run their own program. Is that your dream?
HB: “Yeah, that is something that I would like to do. I would like to be a head coach some day. I feel I’ve got some things that I can bring to the table, yeah it is. My thing, my father used to say, ‘if you’re going to play, play.’ Meaning, go hard at every single thing you do. If you’re going to go for it, then go for it. So if I’m going to be a coach, then let’s go all the way to the top and try to be the best at it. I’m going to go for being a head coach and we’ll see what happens. Now is that the be all, end all for me? No. I’ll let God’s timing work in this thing, but I know it’s something that’ been set before me to do and I look forward to that opportunity when it comes.
Get FSU news sent directly to your inbox! Click for FREE FSU newsletter!
Start you Noles247 7-Day FREE Trial
Last edited:
I like this dudes mentality
"There are a lot of things I liked about Florida State," McDonald said. "First and foremost is the opportunity to play early. They don't have a lot of depth at tight end at all and with them switching to a spread type offense, I think I have a great chance to come and play right away.
"It's a very prestigious program with a lot of tradition and I like the coaching staff a lot. I like coach (Willie) Taggart (head coach) and coach Telly Lockette (TE coach) and I think I can do big things there."
McDonald has yet to visit FSU but has his official visit scheduled for next weekend.
"I really wish I could graduate early and get there for spring ball," McDonald said. "With a chance to play early, I really wanted to try and make that happen but they already started their spring semester and we don't here until the (January) 26th.
"There are a lot of things I liked about Florida State," McDonald said. "First and foremost is the opportunity to play early. They don't have a lot of depth at tight end at all and with them switching to a spread type offense, I think I have a great chance to come and play right away.
"It's a very prestigious program with a lot of tradition and I like the coaching staff a lot. I like coach (Willie) Taggart (head coach) and coach Telly Lockette (TE coach) and I think I can do big things there."
McDonald has yet to visit FSU but has his official visit scheduled for next weekend.
"I really wish I could graduate early and get there for spring ball," McDonald said. "With a chance to play early, I really wanted to try and make that happen but they already started their spring semester and we don't here until the (January) 26th.
McKitty and Cam gonna cause so many problems 
Im thinking the WR from Long Beach Poly Jalen Hall.
Im thinking the WR from Long Beach Poly Jalen Hall.
Dude never even been to Tally and committed. That's dope. 
Telly and Pimp outchea doin WORK!!!