Football

Travis Etienne shocked the masses by deciding to return to Clemson for this senior season instead of entering the 2020 NFL Draft, but while not as tremendous now, the long-hyped running back draft class is still talented. 

After Etienne’s decision on deadline day, let’s reassess the group of ball carriers who’ll be available in April. 

Tier 1

Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin
J.K. Dobbins, Ohio State
D’Andre Swift, Georgia
Cam Akers, Florida State
Zack Moss, Utah 

After back-to-back 2,000-plus yard campaigns at Wisconsin, Taylor made the leap from Madison to the NFL, and rightfully so. At 5-foot-11 and 220 pounds, he has ideal feature back size, outstanding vision to see blocks as they materialize, plus cutting skills and track speed down the field. The front-runner to be the first back off the board, Taylor could hear his name called in Round 1 but is most likely going to be an early second-round selection. 

Highlighted in his huge performance against Clemson in the CFP semifinal, Dobbins has the low center of gravity, power, and lateral juice to accumulate extra yardage in a variety of ways. He’s thick in his lower half and his powerful leg churn allows him to push through weak tackle attempts with good regularity. 

Swift is a jagged, flashy runner who won’t wow consistently, then will hurdle a linebacker and cut the second he lands to pull of a true highlight-reel run. He averaged over six yards per carry in each of his last two seasons at Georgia and is an efficient, decently linear runner with plus contact balance and high-end receiving skills. Despite all that, I do think it’ll take him time to become as effective in the NFL as he was in college because he’s not a truly make-you-miss back with phenomenal acceleration.

Though a touch smaller than the other backs in this group, Akers exceeded expectations not based on his big-time recruiting status but the state of the Seminoles offensive line during his time in Tallahassee. A low-center-of-gravity, powerful back with springy feet and deceptive speed down the field, Akers has fringe franchise back skills and should be a fun feature in an NFL screen game instantly. 

South Florida native Moss landed at Utah and was a bouncy battering ram who displayed impeccable patience as blocks occurred in front of him. Moss isn’t super explosive but has arguably the best jump-cut skills in the class and finishes runs as hard as anyone. He came back heroically from his torn ACL in 2019 by averaging 6.0 yards per carry with 15 scores in 2019. 

Tier 2 

Anthony McFarland, Maryland
Clyde Edwards-Helaire, LSU
Ke’Shawn Vaughn, Vanderbilt     

McFarland is arguably the most electric runner in the class, with instant acceleration, scary change-of-direction capabilities, and long speed you don’t see coming until he’s running past everyone down the field. Maryland’s blocking was average in 2019 but McFarland was a problem in space his past two seasons for the Terrapins. In today’s NFL, elusive, explosive backs thrive. McFarland is that type of back. Don’t be surprised when he outplays his draft position. 

For as eye-poppingly awesome as McFarland is moving in a straight line, Edwards-Helaire is that fun bouncing laterally to avoid tacklers behind the line or close to it. His smaller, squatty frame allows him to naturally win the leverage battle against tacklers, and he runs with an immensely hard-nosed nature. As he demonstrated often in 2019 and the national title game, Edwards-Helaire is simply not easy to corral, and he finds extra yardage in small space or when he sees a defender on the perimeter. 

A smooth, big back with fluid cutting skills and powerful legs, Vaughn was better in 2018 than he was a senior, but because of his size and experience navigating lanes on inside runs, he’ll be a feature back in the eyes of a handful of teams. While he won’t run away back defensive backs down the field, his contact balance is well above average and he has a masters degree in turning a two-yard run into a five-yarder.

Tier 3 

Eno Benjamin, Arizona State
Lamical Perine, Florida
AJ Dillon, Boston College  

Benjamin is a super-springy, shockingly powerful smaller back with comfort in the passing game and contact balance than allows him to almost effortlessly run through tacklers at the second and third levels of the defense. Benjamin carried the ball over 500 times in the past two seasons for the Sun Devils at over five yards per tote with 26 touchdowns. NFL teams will like that he caught 77 passes in that time frame as well. Benjamin looks like a bouncy scat back with no power. He’s not. He’ll lower the boom after he makes both of your linebackers miss in space. 

Perine is the back you want if you’re more into a complete game instead of a true trump card and deficiencies in other areas. Perine runs low, with good lean and adequate bounce. He’s decently quick down the field and recognizes blocks as they pave lanes for him at the second level. He doesn’t stand out in any area but you’ll be hard pressed to find an area of his game in which he struggles. 

Dillon looked the part from the moment he stepped foot on campus at Boston College, as he ran for nearly 1,600 yards with 14 touchdowns as a true freshman in 2017. His high-volume career with the Eagles culminated with a nearly identical season the ground in 2019. At 6-foot and 250 pounds, Dillon is shaped like a fullback, and while he isn’t going to set the track on fire at the combine, he has suddenness in his cuts to run through tackle attempts. Seriously, Dillon is unfazed by the attempts by many linebackers and defensive backs to take him to the turf. 

Clemson running back Travis Etienne is returning to school for his senior year and will bypass the 2020 NFL Draft, but can he be a first-rounder in 2021?

Clemson is going to be pretty good next year.

Dabo Swinney won’t have a bigger recruit this year than convincing running back Travis Etienne to return for his senior season. Etienne made the announcement he’ll return for his final season on Twitter, on the deadline day for underclassmen to declare for the draft.

It seemed like a foregone conclusion that Etienne would skip his senior season and enter the draft after all he’d accomplished in his three years. Etienne broke Raymond Priester‘s Clemson record for career rushing yards in the National Championship Game loss to LSU and was viewed as a likely second round pick in April’s draft.

Now, he’ll be spending his spring getting ready to win a second national championship instead of preparing for the combine, pro day and which suit to wear to the draft when a team makes him an instant multi-millionaire.

Etienne’s return to Clemson doesn’t do a whole lot to improve Clemson’s odds of winning the national championship. It’s not a slight on Etienne, it’s just that Clemson is already the favorite to win the title, so his return makes them a stronger bet to win their second title in three years and third in five years.

Quarterback Trevor Lawrence is already returning since he’s only going to be a rising junior and still a year away from being draft-eligible. Clemson enters the 2020 season with the unquestioned top backfield in college football and two of the leading candidates to win the Heisman Trophy.

Don’t be surprised if Clemson does what Ohio State did last year and have two teammates who are at the Heisman ceremony in New York in early December.

Etienne ran for 1,614 yards and had 19 touchdowns as a junior. He had 1,658 and a nation’s best 24 touchdowns as a sophomore in Clemson’s national championship season in 2018.

He has 4,038 career rushing yards and 56 touchdowns.

Etienne’s decision is obviously great news for Clemson fans. But it’s a puzzling decision considering what he had accomplished and the short shelf life for running backs. Etienne joins Alabama’s Najee Harris as likely Day 2 picks who returned to school rather than cash in and join the NFL now. But Etienne isn’t a finished product either.

The return to school may boost Etienne into the first round in 2021 if he shows he can be a bigger factor in the passing game, both as a receiver and in pass protection. If he can’t be a weapon out of the backfield or in the slot as a receiver and he can’t pick up blitzes and pass block, he won’t be a three-down back in the NFL and therefore will limit his draft value.

Etienne did make a big improvement as a receiver as a junior, catching 37 passes for 432 yards and four touchdowns. This was a massive increase in production from his 12 catches for 78 yards and two scores as a sophomore. If Etienne can make another similar improvement in this phase of the game, it might be enough to crack the first round, despite the added mileage on his body.

For more NCAA football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.

 

To bench, or not to bench? 

That’s the question some NFL head coaches face when their teams have nothing to play for (in terms of playoff positioning — with seeding already locked in) entering the final game of the regular season. Some coaches elect to bench some of their starters to give them an extra week of rest while also ensuing their availability for the playoffs. Conversely, some coaches play their starters and risk the consequences that come with their decision. 

The majority of coaches traditionally go with the former and rest some of their starters, which is what Ravens head coach John Harbaugh elected to do ahead of Baltimore’s Week 17 game against Pittsburgh, a game the Ravens won despite resting several starters that included quarterback Lamar Jackson, running back Mark Ingram, tight end Mark Andrews, offensive lineman Marshal Yanda, defensive lineman Brandon Williams, and safety Earl Thomas. 

Harbaugh, speaking to reporters less than a week after his team’s upset loss to the Titans in the divisional round of the AFC playoffs, was asked if he would still bench several of his starters for Week 17 given the benefit of hindsight. 

“Right now, if I had to do it today and we’re in the same situation, I’ll probably go the other way,” Harbaugh said, via ESPN’s Jamison Hensley. “Now, when that comes up and you’re blasting me for risking our guys, I won’t second-guess it then either.”

Harbaugh, whose team had already locked up the AFC’s No. 1 seed ahead of their regular season finale, admitted during the week of the game that deciding whether or not to play each of his starters was not an easy decision. 

“It’s a strong case to be made either way,” Harbaugh said, via the team’s official website. “I recognize the other side of it. It’s two good choices. We’re going to have to practice really well. The guys who aren’t playing are going to have to practice. We want to win this game. After that, we want to be the very best team we can be coming into the divisional game.”

While he amassed an astounding 508 all-purpose yards, Jackson, who will likely be named the league’s MVP during the league’s annual awards show next month, came out flat last Saturday after not playing in an NFL game since Baltimore’s Week 16 win over Cleveland. After completing 66.1% of his throws during the regular season, Jackson completed just 52.5% of his throws against the Titans. Jackson also threw two interceptions (he threw just six during the regular season) and was sacked four times in his team’s 28-12 loss. 

A narrative has now surfaced suggesting Jackson can’t win in the postseason, as he is now 0-2 in postseason play after Baltimore fell at home to the Chargers in last year’s wild-card playoff round. Harbaugh, who has won just one playoff game since leading the Ravens to victory in Super Bowl XLVII, stood by his quarterback on Friday. 

“He was in my office for a good while (earlier this week). I asked him, ‘What do you need to do to get better?’ We talked about a couple of different areas,” Harbaugh said of Jackson, who this season set an NFL record for rushing yards by a quarterback in a single season. “Without getting into what they are specifically, he nailed them. The priority list in the exact same order that Greg and I nailed the priority list when we were talking on Monday. So it’s not a secret. The things he needs to work on, like any young quarterback, he’ll say everything and it’s true. And then you prioritize what’s the order and what’s the plan going to be going forward to work on those things, and he’s really smart about that. He’s really self critical. He really understands where he needs to improve in order for us to keep taking steps as an offense.

“I think it’s really interesting to look at Lamar Jackson. Look at the progress he made in last year, because the same question, I think you asked it last year, how is gonna get better going forward and he did a good job, right? He’s 23-years-old. He’s younger than Joe Burrow, OK? So he’s got a pretty good head start right now. He’s along the way. The Manning brothers had five losses in their first five playoff games before they won one. Montana, Young, and Favre didn’t start a playoff game until their third season. Brees and Aikman until their fourth season and Rodgers until his fifth season. Interesting. Everybody’s different, right? But I’m really confident in Lamar and him understanding the things he needs to do to get better.” 

Jackson certainly did improve by leaps and bounds following his rookie season, when the former Heisman Trophy winner was thrust into the lineup after Baltimore won just four of their first nine games. But with Jackson under center, the Ravens won six of their final seven games en route to their first division title since 2012. But while Jackson’s rookie success was mostly on the strength of his running ability, Jackson saw rapid improvement as a passer in 2019, as he led the NFL with 36 touchdown passes. 

Before he delves into another offseason, Jackson’s 2019 season is not done yet. On Friday, it was announced that Jackson will take part in this year’s Pro Bowl, as Jackson will look to end his season on a positive note before preparing for the 2020 campaign. 

Carmen Policy, a high-ranking executive on the 49ers’ last four Super Bowl-winning teams, said Lynch and Shanahan had reconnected the team to its halcyon days. He likened the franchise to a beloved relative who had become sick, one that still evoked warm feelings even as people figured it was best to keep their distance.

“And all of a sudden, these great doctors and scientists came up with these various cures and medications, and that relative bounces out of the hospital and he’s right back to where you remember him,” Policy said. “And in some ways, because you haven’t experienced it in a while, he’s even more fun than he used to be.”

In fostering a more positive environment, Shanahan and Lynch valued candor and authenticity. Players felt as comfortable addressing them by their first names as they did discussing their contract status. Coming from Seattle, where he enjoyed playing for another impressive general manager-coach tandem in John Schneider and Pete Carroll, linebacker Brock Coyle said he appreciated how Lynch would speak to the team on occasion.

“It was almost like having two head coaches,” Coyle, one of the first free agents Lynch signed in 2017, said in a telephone interview. Lynch’s playing pedigree — nine Pro Bowls and a Super Bowl title as a hard-hitting safety — gave him authority. “When you have a coach who you respect and a G.M. who you respect, and they respect you and what you’re doing on the field, that breeds confidence, that breeds camaraderie, that breeds trust.”

In assembling their current team, Shanahan and Lynch took risks that rivaled the audacity shown by 49ers ownership when, after firing coaches in three consecutive years, it installed two unproven men in critical leadership positions and allowed them to learn on the job.

In a pass-oriented league, the 49ers handed the richest contract for a fullback in league history to Kyle Juszczyk, so San Francisco could run the ball — or evince the impression it was running — regardless of what the defense presented. Then they loaded up on speedy backs — Raheem Mostert, Matt Breida, Tevin Coleman — whom Shanahan could maximize in open space.

Mike Vrabel played the bulk of his NFL career with the New England Patriots, but we’d be doing him a disservice to say he’s truly a Bill Belichick disciple.

Mike Vrabel is different.

He coaches the Tennessee Titans with the same ferocious energy he used to play 14 years in the NFL with three different franchises, most notably the New England Patriots. Vrabel won three Super Bowls in New England playing linebacker for Bill Belichick, earning his only career trip to the Pro Bowl during the near-undefeated season of 2007.

So one would think Vrabel is undoubtedly a steadfast disciple of the Belichick coaching tree, a tree that has not been as fruitful as its once-promising branches had led us to believe. While Vrabel gets ready for the biggest game of his newfound coaching life, we need to remind ourselves that he’s no Bill O’Brien, no Josh McDaniels, no Romeo Crennel, no Charlie Weis. He’s better.

People tend to forget this because they assume Vrabel was on one of Belichick’s coaching staffs at some point. Nope. In fact, Vrabel was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs along with backup quarterback Matt Cassel after the 2008 season. Vrabel played his final two years for the franchise he’ll face in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday afternoon.

Once Vrabel retired after the 2010 season, he went back to college, joining Luke Fickell’s staff on the Ohio State Buckeyes. A year later, Urban Meyer came out of retirement to coach Ohio State. Vrabel grew as a defensive line coach for two years before going back to the NFL.

In 2014, Vrabel joined O’Brien’s first Houston Texans staff as the linebackers coach. He held the position for three years before taking over as defensive coordinator in 2017. It didn’t last long, as Vrabel was picked to replace Mike Mularkey as the next head coach of the Titans in 2018. Two years later, his plucky football team one win away from the Super Bowl.

Sure, the Belichick connection is obvious with Vrabel. Coaches he’s worked with in O’Brien and Crennel are two of the most discussed branches of the Belichick tree. That being said, Vrabel feels like he better represents the Meyer coaching tree than he does the Belichick one. Just look at Meyer’s disciples and try to convince yourself that Vrabel isn’t having the same kind of success.

Noted Meyer disciples include Fickell, Dan Mullen, Ryan Day and Tom Herman, all of whom have had varying levels of success at the college level. In short, none of these coaches have busted once on their own as so many Belichick disciples have over the years. The really cool part is his team is giving us a fresh, but retro feel to it. The Titans want to beat you up and that’s football at its core.

Few teams in football this year were able to cultivate such a strong identity so quickly. Tennessee plays great defense at all levels, will run the football down your throat with leading rusher Derrick Henry and will design smart passing concepts off the run with offensive coordinator Arthur Smith dialing it up and quarterback Ryan Tannehill executing it.

At first glance, the Titans’ coaching style feels a tad too machismo to be sustainable in the modern NFL. Upon further inspection, you’ll find a team that is clever, willing to adjust on the fly and rarely makes mental mistakes to beat themselves. No, this is not the most talented team left in the playoffs, but there is a good chance it might be the most well-coached one.

At its core, this team feels more like a Meyer team or a Belichick offshoot twice removed than a direct branch from the Evil Empire. But if there is anything this Titans team reminds us of New England, it’s a team-first culture.

Would upsetting the Chiefs in Arrowhead be another remarkable chapter in the story that is the 2019 Titans? Without question, but the Titans don’t need to get to the Super Bowl to prove their point. They have a phenomenal up-and-coming head coach in Vrabel, a guy who will get better with every game under his belt, just like the players on the team he coaches.

Dave Aranda Matt Rhule (Carolina Panthers) The LSU defensive coordinator was connected to the UNLV job earlier in this cycle and now gets an opportunity at a Power Five school. Not only that, but Rhule leaves Aranda a program that was just starting to see the fruits of the rebuilding efforts pay off. This is a great opportunity for Aranda, who Baylor believes can keep in the mix for Big 12 championships. Grade: B Nick Rolovich Mike Leach (Mississippi State) While Rolovich isn’t tied specifically to the wide open offense the Warriors ran in 2019, seeing Cole McDonald’s production does give a glimpse into what this Air Raid roster might be able to accomplish under its new head coach. Rolovich will also bring the entertainment value to those in Pullman accustomed to good quotes from their head coach. Grade: B Mike Leach Joe Moorhead (fired) As far as name and brand recognition, there’s no denying that Mississippi State upgraded here. Leach is a name well-known throughout the college football world, and this might be the best possible hire at this stage of the year. Still, I have some concerns. Joe Moorhead was a bad fit, and I’m not convinced Leach is significantly better. I’m also concerned about Leach’s recruiting, as he’s never been the most dogged on the recruiting trail. That worked out fine at Texas Tech and Wazzu, but will a more laid-back approach talent accumulation work in the SEC? <strong>Grade: B</strong> Brady Hoke Rocky Long (retired) Well, this was certainly unexpected. Rocky Long has stepped down and plans to pursue defensive coordinator jobs elsewhere. Brady Hoke, meanwhile, returns to the helm of a program he led for two seasons, going 13-12. A 9-4 season led to Hoke going to Michigan, but it hasn’t been great since. In fact, I’d argue that the Aztecs have downgraded. Still, given the situation, I’m not going to fail them for being put in a bad spot. <strong>Grade: D</strong> Danny Gonzales Bob Davie (resigned) It’s a little more difficult to properly gauge a hire when the coach comes from the defensive side of the ball these days. It’s often the choice the coach makes in an offensive coordinator that determines their program’s ceiling. As for Gonzales, he orchestrated some great defenses at San Diego State before working under Herm Edwards at Arizona State. The 43-year-old played at New Mexico and spent the first nine years of his coaching career there. So he’s familiar with the school and knows what it will take to be successful. <strong>Grade: B</strong> Kalen DeBoer Jeff Tedford (resigned) A choice so sensible you have to wonder what took so long to make it happen. DeBoer spent two seasons as Tedford’s offensive coordinator in 2017-18, overseeing an offense that helped the Bulldogs go 22-6. Before that he won three NAIA titles at Sioux Falls. This year, as Indiana’s offensive coordinator, the Hoosiers scored six more points per game than last year and finished second in offensive yards per game in the Big Ten. <strong>Grade: A</strong> Jeff Hafley Steve Addazio (fired) Considering athletic director Martin Jarmond’s ties to Ohio State, it always felt like BC would hire somebody with a Buckeye connection, and that’s what they’ve done with Hafley. Only 40, Hafley has coached since 2001 at both the college and. NFL levels. This season — his lone as Ohio State’s DC — he helped turn around the Buckeyes defense. Now he’ll be charged with taking Boston College to the next level in the ACC. <strong>Grade: B</strong> Shawn Clark Eli Drinkwitz (Missouri) When conducting your second coaching search in as many seasons, it’s natural to gravitate toward consistency. Appalachian State has done that by promoting Shawn Clark to head coach. Clark, 44, has not only been App State’s offensive line coach the last four seasons under both Scott Satterfield and Drinkwitz, but he played in Boone. There are very few candidates out there more familiar with the program or the players. It’s a logical hire for a program looking to maintain its run of success in the Sun Belt. <strong>Grade: B+</strong> Ryan Silverfield Mike Norvell (Florida State) Continuity is a good thing. Memphis is one of the more attractive Group of Five jobs in the country thanks to the work that Justin Fuente and Norvell did there, so there were likely plenty of interested suitors, but Silverfield has been with the program since 2016. He was named interim coach after Norvell left, and he’s popular with the players in the locker room. While a lack of coordinator or head coach experience can be seen as a concern, there are plenty of recent examples of that not being an impediment to a successful tenure at the top. <strong>Grade: B</strong> Steve Addazio Mike Bobo (resigned) Addazio is 57-55 in nine seasons as a coach and was 44-44 at Boston College. This grade isn’t about that, though, it’s about my preference to see schools like Colorado State go after coaches with higher ceilings. Yes, if a coach comes in and wins a lot, they’ll probably leave. But if Addazio wins a lot, he’ll do the same. To this point, however, Addazio hasn’t shown a track record of great success, and he’s never coached west of Indiana, let alone in the Colorado region. <strong>Grade: D</strong> Willie Taggart Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss) It’s a hire that makes a lot of sense for FAU given Taggart’s history and ties in the state. It’s also a change of pace for Taggart, who has always taken over programs in need of a rebuild. FAU is move-in ready, and should allow Taggart more time than he was given at FSU. Plus, if success at FAU can land Lane Kiffin another SEC gig, it can be a path for Taggart back to the Power Five as well. Solid hire for the Owls. <strong>Grade: B+</strong> Marcus Arroyo Tony Sanchez (fired) This was a job that was more attractive to candidates than many might have realized. At one point LSU DC Dave Aranda was a candidate, and he’s making $2.5 million in Baton Rouge. Instead, the Rebels land Arroyo from Oregon, where he spent the last three seasons running the offense and grooming Justin Herbert. He was also a terrific recruiter for the Ducks, which is something UNLV hopes will continue in Las Vegas. <strong>Grade: B</strong> Jeff Scott Charlie Strong (fired) It was only a matter of time before one of Clemson’s co-offensive coordinators moved on to a head coaching gig, and Scott is the first to go. Given his experience and successes at Clemson, as well as his ability as a recruiter, this seems like a hire with a high ceiling for South Florida. There are no guarantees in coaching hires, but I’d much rather see USF go this direction than a retread. <strong>Grade: A</strong> Jeff Traylor Frank Wilson (fired) UTSA fired Wilson, who had never been a coordinator or head coach at any level thanks in large part to his work as a recruiter and his ties to area high schools. After firing Wilson, UTSA has hired Traylor, who has no head coach or coordinator experience at the college level. What he does have, however, is plenty of tie-ins at the high school level in Texas after spending 15 seasons as the head coach at Gilmer. If at first you don’t succeed … <strong>Grade: B</strong> Ricky Rahne Bobby Wilder (resigned) Rahne took over the playcalling duties at Penn State after Joe Moorhead left for Mississippi State. After averaging 41.1 points per game in 2017 under Moorhead, the PSU offense dropped to 33.8 ppg under Rahne in 2018 without Saquon Barkley. In 2019, after losing QB Trace McSorley, that number improved to 34.3. Old Dominion is hiring him because it believes he’ll be able to put points on the board. Thus far, reviews are mixed. <strong>Grade: C+</strong> Eli Drinkwitz Barry Odom (fired) Drinkwitz has been considered a rising star in the coaching world ever since he came up from the high school ranks with Gus Malzahn. He just led Appalachian State to a Sun Belt title, but it’s hard to know how much credit Drinkwitz deserves for it. He inherited a program that Satterfield built, and was only in Boone for a season, so we have no idea how Drink will perform when a program is truly his. <strong>Grade: B</strong> Sam Pittman Chad Morris (fired) It’s hard to think that Arkansas’ plan when it fired Chad Morris during his second year to hire Pittman, but here we are. Pittman was the associate head coach and offensive line coach at Georgia, but spent three seasons at Arkansas. He’s never been a coordinator, let alone a head coach at the FBS level, but is considered an excellent recruiter. It could work, but it’s hard to be excited by the move. <strong>Grade: C</strong> Mike Norvell Willie Taggart (fired) He isn’t Bob Stoops, and he might not be a household name, but Norvell has had a lot of success at Memphis. In four seasons, he went 37-15 and 24-8 in the AAC, leading Memphis to conference title and Cotton Bowl berth this season. He’s done all this despite continually having his staff raided by bigger schools. Yet, year after year, Norvell’s program has kept humming along. This is a home run hire, even if Noles fans don’t realize it. <strong>Grade: A</strong> Lane Kiffin Matt Luke (fired) How you feel about this hire likely depends on how you feel about Kiffin, who is a polarizing figure. If Ole Miss is hiring the guy who was in charge at Tennessee and USC, this probably isn’t going to work. If Ole Miss is getting the Nick Saban School for Wayward Coaches graduate, the coach who took over a dormant FAU program and won two conference titles in three years, this could work. Frankly, I don’t know how it will go. It could be great, it could be a complete disaster. Ole Miss is not an easy job, and I don’t know what better coach is out there the Rebels could have reasonably been hoping to land. So, because of that, it’s hard to give this hire anything other than an A. <strong>Grade: A</strong> Jimmy Lake Chris Petersen (resigned) Well, this will likely go down as the most unexpected and quickest change on the carousel this winter. Considering Lake’s familiarity with the program, and that he was the hand-chosen successor to Petersen, it’s hard to give this anything other than an “A.” Of course, Lake has never been a head coach before, so anything is possible, but he’s had one of the best mentors a coach could hope for, and he’s already beloved by his players. This transition should be smooth, and that helps. <strong>Grade: A</strong> Greg Schiano Chris Ash (fired) I wrote a couple of days after Rutgers fired Ash that Schiano was the logical choice to replace him, and while it took a while, Rutgers settled on the correct answer. Schiano has had more success at Rutgers than anybody else, but it’s important to remember that it came while Rutgers was in the Big East. Odds are he won’t have the same results in the Big Ten East, but this is about getting the program back to a level of respectability. If Schiano can remove the doormat status from this program, the hire will be a success. <strong>Grade: A</strong>