Rich Rodriguez: The Revolutionary Coach the Big Ten Needs

After all that struggle, Michigan has finally found their man.

Its embarrassing watching guys like Les Miles, Greg Schiano, Brian Kelly, and Jim Harbaugh turn down any interest in coaching one of the most prestigious jobs in College Football.

It’s the Michigan Wolverines! A guy from Rutgers turned them down. Either Schiano really loves his situation—and by all accounts he does—or Michigan is really not a good job.

But just when you think Brady Hoke is going to be your new coach, something good happens.

Rich Rodriguez accepted the job to coach Michigan Sunday afternoon. This move will undoubtedly change the face of Big Ten football.

Year after year, the Big Ten has started down a slippery road that inevitably has led them towards a dead end.

It all began with Michigan, a few years ago in the Rose Bowl against Texas. Vince Young shredded their defense and ran right up the middle—and the Wolverines couldn’t do a damn thing about it.

But Vince Young did that to everyone. So, no big deal, right?

Wrong. Michigan continued to struggle against offenses that had speed at quarterback, or at any other offensive position; The Wolverines not only lacked speed on offense, but they were vulnerable to the same on defense.

Now Ohio State is showing signs of falling victim to the devastating speed present in the rest of the country's conferences.

First, Florida ran rampant over the Buckeyes in last year's BCS Title Game. Then, this year the Buckeyes' lone loss is primarily due to the speed Ron Zook has brought to Illinois.

Zook has opened up the eyes of many people in Illinois. Is he a good coach? Many people in Florida might give you a stern look if you said that.

But it looks to me as if the Big Ten, minus Illinois, is lagging behind.

Enter Rich Rodriguez—a guy who runs an offense centered around athletes like Pat White, Steve Slaton, and Noel Devine.

Now he is coming to the Big Ten to work his magic, and you can bet with the recruitinh resources a Michigan coach has at his disposal, he is going to be far more dangerous than he was at West Virginia.

Could this be the hire that turns the Big Ten upside down?

Maybe not initially. It’s going to take some time for Coach Rod to get his players in. For now he has to let Ryan Mallett sling the ball around.

The fact reamins though: teams in the Big Tenust need a little bit of that old-fashioned, home-grown speed.

If you have a little bit of that, then you have a chance against the slow athletes of the Big Ten.