Stanford Head Football Coach Troy Taylor

In looking to rebuild a winning football program, Stanford didn’t have to look far for their new football coach. Troy Taylor is a familiar name to aficionados of Northern California football. The Sacramento native held the career passing records at Cal until he was surpassed by Jared Goff. He made his mark in building Folsom High School into a powerhouse before embarking in the world of college coaching. After stops at Eastern Washington and Utah, Taylor transformed Sacramento State, going 30-8 in his time with Hornets with three Big Sky Championships. His teams won their last 19 conferenence and the Hornets reached the FCS quarterfinals leading Taylor to this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Taylor chats with Dave about the emotional roller coaster that was the transition to a new job along with the strategy in building a winner on The Farm. Taylor looks back the foundation of his offensive philosophy and those who made lasting impression going back to his days as a high school quarterback. In Sacramento, Taylor raised eyebrows with his two-quarterback system while confessing he toyed with the idea of using three at one time.

Finally, Coach Taylor discusses the time frame for ultimate success–something he’s confident will happen at Stanford.

The Dave Lewis Show
The Dave Lewis Show
Troy Taylor laying the foundation for success at Stanford
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April 13, 2023

Troy Taylor laying the foundation for success at Stanford

"I won the starting job over a real good player who was the starting quaterback the year before. And I was playing my old school, Bella Vista High School, in our very first game. On my first pass, I threw an interception. One of the assistant coaches on the staff...wanted to pull me to get me out of the game and put the other quarterback in the there. In fact, I was standing there as he told (Head Coach) Max Miller to go with the other quarterback. I'll never forget it. It was a turning point in my life. Max never even looked at him and said, "Troy's our quarterback. I went back in and we had an unbelievable year. It really changed my life.
February 24, 2022

Pac-12 Network’s Krista Blunk on anniversary of Title IX, Juwan Howard, St. Mary’s chances and Olympic Games broadcasting debut

"You're supposed to be a good sport. Someone is going to win the game and somebody's going to lose the game...I just remember and athletic director of mine saying 'you can't be so hard on yourself if you miss a shot. If you're willing to take the shot, it's either going to go in or it's not. And if you can't handle those odds then you shouldn't take the shot.' And if you can't handle the odds of 'you might lose this game" also then maybe you shouldn't be a part of it. I think that we ought to be able to fist bump or shake hands and respect what an opponent is capable of doing maybe better than you were capable of doing that day."
October 9, 2020

Seattle Storm CEO and GM Alisha Valavanis Looks Back at Championship Season

"From the very beginning, the union, the league and the teams committed to 'Say Her Name" and Black Lives Matter and those movements as kind of the focus of the season and I think it was inspiring to watch these players work on the court and work off the court. And I know the teams around the league backed the players and really focused on those two campaigns, 'Say Her Name' and Black Lives Matter."
June 18, 2020

Lindsay Gottlieb Makes Smooth Adjustment to the NBA in Troubled Times

"People think I care about these issues because I have a black husband or a biracial son and I tell people, actually, the time it impacted me most closely was coaching a mostly black team at Cal and seeing the world through their eyes and the experiences they went through. We flew commercial and would be going through security and inevitably someone would get stopped and searched. And it wasn't me...ever. And watching the way some commentators and fans talked about these women you and I knew so intimately, it was hurtful sometimes to hear some of the language used."
February 12, 2020

WNBA Reshanda Gray’s Life-Changing Meeting with Kobe Bryant

"Kobe said....you have to envision, see yourself being great even if you're not great yet. I'm like 13 or 14 and I'm like 'what the hell does that mean.?' Eventually, I got older and started to watch him win championships and I think it's starting to click of what he was saying. I have to see myself so I have to envision even though I'm not there, I still have to work toward being there because that's my end goal."