Rutgers Football New Head Coach

Driving home from High Point Solutions Stadium last week, it became obvious to many fans like myself that a change needed to be made.  After another deflating defeat from another Big 10 team, there was a sense of hitting rock bottom.

It's funny, going into this season, there was some optimism.  Rutgers had a successful 8-5 first season in the Big 10 and went to another bowl game.  Things were on the upswing.  But this season spiraled out of control before a game was even played.  Legal trouble, arrests, misconduct by the Head Coach all put a dark cloud over the program.  Combine all that with several blowout losses, in which the team was just over matched, and we are left with a program in need of a new direction.

For one thing, I am very happy that a quick decision was made to fire both Kyle Flood and athletic director Julie Herman,  Overall I think flood did a nice job as head coach.  He kept alive many of the mantras of the Greg Schiano era.  He made bowl games.  He won a share of a league title.  And he was well liked by both former and current players. 

After, the firing, rumors swirled about possible replacements, and one of the first reports had Greg Schiano coming back to coach the team.  While this wouldn't have been the worst idea (he probably had the best resume of any candidate), it wouldn't have made the program any different.  They would have been moving backwards when they really needed to turn the page to a new chapter.
I see the Flood  era as just an extension of the Schiano era, a great growth period for Rutgers football.
But sometimes change is necessary.  Sometimes a new coach is what a team or program needs to continue to move forward and to get to that next level.

I don't know much about Chris Ash.  but after hearing his press conference, I like what he is about.
He is an accomplished assistant coach that comes from winning programs in the Big 10.  He seems to have a sense of positive energy and drive about him.  Even at his press conference, he told the people in the room that he wanted to see more smiles in the place.  I like that.
I hope he can infuse positive thinking into this program and it's players, recruits, and fans.
That is what this team and University needs to do to move forward and grow as a program.

-BNolan