In filling the lone remaining hole on his Stanford coaching staff, David Shaw may raise some eyebrows by looking to an individual who has never coached the position for which he was hired at any level and hasn’t been a full-time assistant at the FBS level.
Based on Shaw’s track record, however, I wouldn’t bet on this being anything other than yet another successful hire.
In a release, the Cardinal announced Wednesday that Lance Taylor (no relation) (not my adult film moniker) has been hired as Shaw’s new running backs coach. Taylor will replace Tavita Pritchard, who assumed the role of quarterbacks coach/wide receivers coach after Mike Sanford left to become Boise State’s offensive coordinator.
“Lance is a bright, energetic coach that has the experience of working with multiple positions at the highest level of football,” said Shaw in a statement. “Our running backs will benefit from his passionate and detailed approach to the game.”
Taylor, who was a wide receiver at Alabama (1999-2003), spent the past four seasons with the NFL’s New York Jets and Carolina Panthers. His first coaching job came as a grad assistant with the Tide in 2007 and then again in 2008. His only job as a full-time assistant at the collegiate level came at Appalachian State in 2009.
(Photo credit: Stanford athletics)