Rutgers Fires Chris Ash

The first coach has fallen, you knew it was coming. Chris is a great dude and will be improving a defense on the sidelines somewhere next year.

Urban Meyer to Rutgers?

What a mess Rutgers is.

I'm genuinely curious as to whether there is anyone out there that is both 1) capable of turning that ship around and 2) actually willing to walk into that disaster.

Urban Meyer to Rutgers?

Schiano.

Schiano.

Yep. The rumor is that’s why he turned down the Pats DC job this offseason.

Yep. The rumor is that’s why he turned down the Pats DC job this offseason.

Too Getslow’s point, I don’t know how he would rebuild that ship. It’s. 5-7 year commitment by Rutgers with a lot of hope.

Too Getslow’s point, I don’t know how he would rebuild that ship. It’s. 5-7 year commitment by Rutgers with a lot of hope.

Rutgers absolute ceiling in the Big 10 is winning 6 games. I understand why the Big 10 added Rutgers and I understand why Rutgers wants to be in the Big 10. But they are such a drag on the rest of the conference. They are non competitive in every sport. It’s the only conference that has a program that has a team that is just completely useless besides geography. The perennial bottom dweller in every conference provides some value besides Rutgers. Kansas obviously has basketball, Oregon State has baseball, the ACC doesn’t really have a perennial bottom dweller besides Wake Forest but they have made a bowl game in each of the last 3 years and since they are 5-0 now I think 4 years is very likely, Vandy is competitive in basketball and obviously their academics are great. Rutgers provides absolutely zero value besides TV revenue nor does the Big 10 really provide value to Rutgers. It’s just a bad relationship. The Big 10 and Rutgers are like a married couple that hate each other but stay together because of finances.

Rutgers absolute ceiling in the Big 10 is winning 6 games. I understand why the Big 10 added Rutgers and I understand why Rutgers wants to be in the Big 10. But they are such a drag on the rest of the conference. They are non competitive in every sport. It’s the only conference that has a program that has a team that is just completely useless besides geography. The perennial bottom dweller in every conference provides some value besides Rutgers. Kansas obviously has basketball, Oregon State has baseball, the ACC doesn’t really have a perennial bottom dweller besides Wake Forest but they have made a bowl game in each of the last 3 years and since they are 5-0 now I think 4 years is very likely, Vandy is competitive in basketball and obviously their academics are great. Rutgers provides absolutely zero value besides TV revenue nor does the Big 10 really provide value to Rutgers. It’s just a bad relationship. The Big 10 and Rutgers are like a married couple that hate each other but stay together because of finances.

That was going to be my question... What exactly is a rebuild at Rutgers? What can they honestly expect on an annual basis from ANY coach? Not much, IMO. Being bowl eligible every year would seem like a stretch honestly.

That was going to be my question... What exactly is a rebuild at Rutgers? What can they honestly expect on an annual basis from ANY coach? Not much, IMO. Being bowl eligible every year would seem like a stretch honestly.

That schedule is too monstrous on an annual basis to expect bowl eligibility.

The athletic department should be looking for an experienced coach who can get the most of players and use the up and down nature of their recruiting cycles to expect to sneak a few past the low end of their division then get lucky in the rotations with the other division to get to 6-6 every other year or every third year. Any more than that is outside the nature of where they are right now.

That nine-game league schedule isn't helping them either.

Honestly I’m not sure Rutgers could ever be competitive in any conference in FBS football.

Honestly I’m not sure Rutgers could ever be competitive in any conference in FBS football.

The best years they ever had were in competition with the teams that now make up the backbone of the AAC. I think they could gradually build back to at least mediocrity against that schedule... provided they got the right coach and a helpful degree of leadership at the university.

Stick them in UConn's spot in the East over the next five to ten years and it might at least be interesting.

Honestly I’m not sure Rutgers could ever be competitive in any conference in FBS football.

Would UC face the same problem I’m the B10? Or would they be that 6-6 team Rutgers is trying to get too?

Would UC face the same problem I’m the B10? Or would they be that 6-6 team Rutgers is trying to get too?

UC in the Big 10 would be like UK is in the SEC right now. Every 3-4 years could have a special class and win 10-11 games and the other years will be 6-8 wins.

The best years they ever had were in competition with the teams that now make up the backbone of the AAC. I think they could gradually build back to at least mediocrity against that schedule... provided they got the right coach and a helpful degree of leadership at the university.

 

Stick them in UConn's spot in the East over the next five to ten years and it might at least be interesting.

I’m not sure they could get back to a competitive level even in the AAC. Bowl team annually? That’s likely, but at best they would be a middle of the road AAC team.

I’m not sure they could get back to a competitive level even in the AAC. Bowl team annually? That’s likely, but at best they would be a middle of the road AAC team.

The nice thing about the AAC (or formerly the Big East) if you're a rebuilding program is that everything is cyclical, something you don't get in the Power Five. Coach shows up, coach builds program, coach leaves. Anybody can win, but nobody wins for long. Apart from WVU, in those years between the 2005 and 2013 alignments, teams were all over the place. The league still has some of that in it.

Not a particularly compelling hypothetical since Rutgers isn't going anywhere, but it's a more interesting case than Rutgers finding 6 wins with a Big Ten schedule anytime soon.