Oregon players support Taggart's decision to dismiss Carrington

Willie Taggart was faced with a tough decision surrounding the case of former Oregon wide receiver Darren Carrington II and in the end, he elected to dismiss his leading receiver from the program.

The first-year head coach won't have to worry about how his players will react to the decision however, as multiple players have already showed their support, according to ESPN.

"We're standing behind Coach T," sophomore quarterback Justin Herbert said. "Darren has moved on, and I think we are too."

The senior wideout officially signed with Utah on Thursday, adding significance to the matchup between the two programs scheduled for Oct. 28.

Related: Utah's Whittingham: We did our homework on Carrington

Taggart spoke of the finality of his decision pertaining to Carrington, saying that despite his wishes to help the receiver, rules need to be followed.

"I think it's always tough because you always want to help young people," he said. "You don't ever want to throw them out or kick them to the curb. You want to help them reach their dreams, goals and aspirations. But in the same sense, we have rules. And the rules, you have to abide by the rules, and when you break the rules, there are consequences.

"Unfortunately, the consequences for Darren were for us both to move on. I wish him nothing but the best. He's a great football player, and I hope things get right for him."

There are no hard feelings with his former teammates however, as sophomore linebacker Troy Dye is looking forward to meeting up with Carrington when the two teams square off.

"It's probably going to be pretty fun to see Darren come back to Autzen and play against him," he said. "But we're looking forward to going out there and getting a W."