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Ducks' Taggart off to a rocky start By Ryan Thorburn Eugene Register-Guard Jan 23, 2017 12:00 AM A A EUGENE — Willie Taggart is still more than seven months away from coaching his first game at the University of Oregon, but the new era of Duck football is off to a regrettable start off the field. David Reaves, who was officially announced as Oregon’s co-offensive coordinator on Tuesday, will be fired after less than a week on the job after he was arrested by Eugene police early Sunday morning for driving under the influence of intoxicants. The university plans to terminate Reaves’ contract, a two-year deal with an annual salary of $300,000. “University of Oregon assistant football coach David Reaves was arrested last night and charged with driving under the influence by members of the Eugene Police Department,” Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens said in a statement released by the school. “Reaves has been placed on administrative leave, and the process to terminate his employment with cause has commenced. The university has high standards for the conduct of employees and is addressing this matter with the utmost of seriousness.” Reaves, 38, was driving a vehicle with one adult passenger when he was stopped for traffic violations at 2:12 a.m. Sunday at 10th Avenue and Willamette Street, according to police. Six patrol units responded to the scene, and Reaves was placed under arrest. Bail was set at $1,460, and he was ordered to appear in Eugene Municipal Court on Wednesday. Reaves, who was the associate head coach and tight ends coach at South Florida under Taggart, no longer was in custody Sunday afternoon, according to the Lane County Sheriff’s Office. Reaves’ arrest is the second major off-season incident involving Oregon football assistants in the past two weeks. Three players recently were hospitalized after supervised workouts. The program’s new strength and conditioning coach, Irele Oderinde, was suspended for a month without pay as a result of the incident. Shortly after being hired on Dec. 7, Taggart talked about putting together a strong coaching staff to assist in getting the Ducks back in contention for Pac-12 and national championships. “I’m not in a hurry because it’s so important I get the right guys here, not just get any guy,” Taggart said. “I made that mistake before in just getting guys, and it didn’t work. I told myself I’d never make that mistake again.” After three days of winter strength and conditioning workouts supervised by Oderinde, who also was on Taggart’s staff at South Florida, offensive linemen Doug Brenner and Sam Poutasi and tight end Cam McCormick were hospitalized with exercise-related injuries. Taggart issued an apology on behalf of his staff and the athletic department. All three players have been discharged from PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center at Riverbend in Springfield. “As the head football coach, I hold myself responsible for all of our football-related activities and the safety of our students must come first,” Taggart said in a statement. “I have addressed the issue with our strength and conditioning staff, and I fully support the actions taken by the university.” Reaves held the title of passing-game coordinator and also was going to coach Oregon’s tight ends. He spent the previous four seasons at South Florida, starting in 2013 as wide receivers’ coach. Reaves, a former quarterback at Appalachian State, began his coaching career in 2002 as a graduate assistant at South Carolina. He became a full-time assistant two years later with the Gamecocks and coached defensive backs, then coached quarterbacks while serving as recruiting coordinator during his final two seasons. He went to Tennessee in 2009, working for then-Vols coach Lane Kiffin, who was his brother-in-law. Kiffin left the Volunteers after one season, and Reaves coached at New Mexico for two seasons including one year as offensive coordinator. Reaves was accused by the NCAA of asking to have people make impermissible contact with recruits during his time at Tennessee, according to media reports. Reaves spent 2012 working at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., before joining Taggart the following season. Reaves’ dismissal creates questions regarding the staff’s roles coaching the team. Reaves was co-offensive coordinator with Cristobal, but it is unclear whether Cristobal will have that title to himself or if Taggart will continue to have Cristobal share the duties with another coach. Reaves