IRVING, Texas – A lot of times coaches making the jump from college football to the NFL struggle. There are a variety of reasons and some of it has to do with the organizations they join.

Jimmy Johnson proved to be one of the exceptions when he came to the Cowboys,

Tampa Bay’s Greg Schiano, who came to the NFL from Rutgers, is hoping to be more like Johnson than, say, Steve Spurrier.

Schiano has NFL-experienced assistants and coordinators and he also has former Cowboys assistant coach Butch Davis on the staff.

“One of the reasons I wanted to hire Butch, other than the fact that he was available and he’s an excellent football coach, is he could help me maybe navigate some of the minefields, some of the things I’m not aware of,” Schiano said. “He’s been a big help in the time we’ve been together here.”

Schiano did not seek out Johnson’s counsel as he made the jump, but Davis and former coordinator Dave Wannstedt are friends.

“Other than shaking his hand, I don’t know coach that well,” Schiano said, “but Butch and Dave all those guys are close. I’ve got to believe there’s a lot of Jimmy Johnson in what we do as far as organization and football and all those things.”