Troy Taylor confident in Stanford players ahead of first year as head coach

New Stanford head coach Troy Taylor is confident in his group of players ready to represent the university in the best way possible on the field.

As the school transitions from the David Shaw era, Taylor loves the way his players represent the program. Whether that means they can make noise in the Pac-12 is a different story.

Stanford went 3-9 during the final year under Shaw before turning it over to Taylor. But the coach promised a quality product.

“We’re really establishing, kind of, who our main players are,” Taylor said on Sirius XM Pac-12 Radio. “The great thing at Stanford is we got a lot of those types of guys that are their leaders. They’ve been leaders throughout their entire life. And so now are they outspoken leaders? Not all of them are. Some of them are just leading by example, which is the best way to lead. But I feel extraordinarily great about the character of our team. 

“I mean, the Stanford man is a pretty impressive guy. He works hard at everything he does, he’s able to balance scholastics and athletics and tries to be great at everything, so how can you not be fired up about having a room full of guys like that?”

Taylor spent the last four years at Sacramento State before Stanford, with no season in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He led the team to three Big Sky Conference titles and as far as the FCS quarterfinal round in last year’s playoffs.

It’ll be tough sledding for the Cardinal moving forward. But, Stanford had the No. 42 overall recruiting class in the 2023 cycle, per the On3 Industry Ranking. But no four or five-star prospects.

So far, Stanford is No. 50 early on in the 2024 cycle. 

The football program hasn’t made the postseason since 2018, when they finished 9-4 and won the Sun Bowl. Since then, Shaw led Stanford to a 14-28 record.

It’s a rebuilding job for sure, but Taylor could resurrect Stanford with his experience.

This also isn’t his first rodeo in the Pac-12. Taylor coached at Utah for two seasons (2017 and ‘18), serving as the offensive coordinator and quarterback’s coach.

Taylor is also a former quarterback when he played at Cal and was a fourth round NFL Draft pick in 1990. He subsequently played for the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins.

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The Stanford mantra means something to Taylor and it could lead to a nice turnaround and a great story in college football.