Greg Schiano to Tampa Bay: Why Surprise Hire Will Benefit the Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers just shocked everyone and made a huge splash by hiring former Rutgers Scarlet Knights coach Greg Schiano. This is a great move for a franchise that needed to roll the dice in order to become competitive again.

Adam Schefter of ESPN first reported the news on Twitter.

It was confirmed by Brett McMurphy of CBSSports and Jason La Canfora over a series of tweets.

The Bucs severely needed a breath of fresh air after a significant regression this past year under now-fired head coach Raheem Morris.

Morris led this talented but inexperienced group to a 10-win season in 2010-11, but only managed to garner four victories in 2011-12.

Schiano’s greatest asset is his history of turning around a team that had potential but never fully realized it.

In 2001, he inherited a Scarlet Knights program that had not had a winning season since 1992. After a shaky start, he led them to five bowl victories on six attempts over the last seven years. He finished his 11-year career at Rutgers with 68 wins and 67 losses, along with a stellar 5-1 postseason record.

Now, the 45-year-old coach has a chance to revitalize this Tampa Bay franchise, which last made the postseason all the way back in 2007.

Schiano will take control of a roster that has plenty of valuable pieces and a number of young players who look primed to flourish under his guidance.

College coaches often have trouble adjusting to the NFL game and personnel, but the owners and front office have a lot of faith in their new hire’s ability.

According to Schefter’s report:

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The Glazer family also conducted a massive amount of research, reaching out to various NFL people. One of the people they called was Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who spoke highly of Schiano.

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Having arguably one of the greatest coaches of all-time give praise to Schiano is a wonderful sign for the organization going forward.

Tampa Bay has a bright future and the No. 5 pick in this stacked draft while still retaining many of the same players who helped them to the cusp of a postseason appearance in 2010.

Now they have a coach who can actually help this group get in there and do some damage.