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Luke Fickell was placed in an extremely difficult position when Ohio State appointed him to take over for Jim Tressel on Memorial Day.

Becoming a first-time head coach is tough enough. Doing so three months before the season after a scandal at a place like Ohio State is even tougher. Inheriting a team without a proven quarterback, without a starting left tackle and a starting running back for five games, and without the team's only proven wide receiver for 10 games ... well, you get the point.

Still, few saw Ohio State going 6-6 this season, the Buckeyes' worst mark since 1999. Aside from a dramatic win against Wisconsin and a three-game win streak midway through Big Ten play, Ohio State had little to celebrate this fall.

Now with Urban Meyer expected to be introduced as Ohio State's next head coach later this afternoon, it's time to take a look at Fickell's short tenure in charge. There's a good chance Fickell leads the Buckeyes in their upcoming bowl game -- he reportedly could stay on Meyer's staff as an assistant -- but it's fair to take a snapshot of his performance in the lead role.

Like many, I was extremely impressed with the way Fickell handled himself in the media spotlight. He was honest and direct, and even showed a bit of emotion, like after Saturday's loss to Michigan. Perhaps it's because he hadn't been a head coach before, but Fickell really seemed to stay true to himself in these situations. He often talked about the importance of momentum -- getting it and then sustaining it -- and the difficulty to keep it this season. These qualities will help him when he gets a head-coaching opportunity -- and he will get one.

As a game coach, Fickell showed his inexperience at times. His teams often started slowly and fell behind. He coached conservatively -- not a surprise for a guy who apprenticed for Jim Tressel -- but it cost Ohio State at times. Ohio State clearly missed the influence of both Tressel and former assistant Darrell Hazell on offensive play-calling, as the offense really struggled until the breakout performance against Michigan. You didn't get the sense Fickell put his stamp on the program on game days.

Ohio State should have won more games than it did, but this was never a championship-caliber team, given the suspensions and Terrelle Pryor's departure.

So what grade should Fickell receive? I'd give him a C. And if I were an athletic director looking for a rising star, I'd put in a call to Fickell.

What grade would you give Fickell?

1. Kent State first-year coach Darrell Hazell spent the past seven seasons as an Ohio State assistant. He recalls how the Buckeyes struggled with Ohio in 2008 and Navy in 2009, and hopes that No. 2 Alabama will take the Golden Flashes for granted Saturday. “It’s hard to get up every week,” Hazell said. “But you’ve got to tell your team you have to get up and play. Sometimes you can tell ‘em and tell ‘em as much as you want, but if they don’t do it, that’s when you get yourself in a dogfight in the latter part of the game.”

2. The spotlight on new offensive coordinators hired to perform an extreme makeover has been focused on Steve Kragthorpe of LSU, Charlie Weis of Florida and Bryan Harsin of Texas. But the coach who may get the best results is Kevin Rogers at Boston College. Sophomore Chase Rettig started last season and struggled for the Eagles. Under Rogers’ tutelage, Rettig is displaying new confidence. And Rettig also will have one of the best tailbacks in the nation, senior Montel Harris, to draw defensive attention.

3. East Carolina coach Ruffin McNeill said Monday that his team had weathered Hurricane Irene well over the weekend. McNeill had a tree fall and land on his house, but he and the rest of the Pirates escaped injury. He seized the opportunity to show his players video about the travails ECU suffered in 1999 when Hurricane Floyd savaged the campus. “At the end,” McNeill said in his news conference Monday, “I told the team that it was not a made-up movie. It did not have directors or actors. These were Pirates like you.”

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- It's a moment Luke Fickell will never forget, but he won't let it get the best of him.

No one would fault Fickell if he trotted onto the field Sept. 3 at Ohio Stadium and shouted, "This is awesome!" After nine years as a successful assistant coach for Ohio State, Fickell will take on the head-coaching duties for the first time. For his alma mater. In his hometown.

He'll be a few weeks past his 38th birthday.

Sure, the circumstances are less than ideal. Fickell, recently appointed Ohio State's assistant head coach, will be filling in for Jim Tressel during Tressel's five-game suspension for violating NCAA rules. Fickell would much rather serve in his standard role as co-defensive coordinator/linebackers coach when Ohio State opens the season against Akron.

But the chance to lead Ohio State is an opportunity Fickell doesn't minimize.

"It is exciting, it will be exciting," Fickell recently told ESPN.com. "I'm sure there will be a gamut of emotions. But if you let yourself get drawn into those things and have them occupy your mind, that's not what I need to do. One of my strengths is to not allow my mind to be in those types of situations."

Fickell hasn't allowed his mind to shift into head-coach mode. Not yet, at least.

Tressel is leading Ohio State in spring practice, which frees up Fickell to handle his standard duties of mentoring the linebackers and collaborating with coordinator Jim Heacock and the other defensive assistants. Although the team announced Fickell would be handling Tressel's game-day duties before spring practice, there's no rush to get Fickell ready for game day.

"The week of the game," Tressel said when asked when the process would begin. "You don't rehearse anything about the game until the week of the game. We don't do it in spring, we don't do it in preseason. ... There probably will be very little differences before game week."

Tressel and athletic director Gene Smith had discussed promoting Fickell to assistant head coach after Darrell Hazell left for the top job at Kent State. And when Tressel's violations came to light, Tressel and Smith met again and selected Fickell for the interim role.

Fickell said Smith will be involved in getting the entire staff prepared for Tressel's absence.

"With our staff and coach Tress, we'll have a great grasp on how we want to handle things," Fickell said, "play it out and have a plan for adverse things that could arise. I don't know if there's a whole lot of situations that have been like this, maybe at Michigan State when coach [Dantonio] wasn't there this past year."

Ohio State might reach out to Michigan State's staff to discuss how it handed Dantonio's health-related absence last year. Tressel had both Dantonio and Don Treadwell, who filled in for Dantonio last season, on his previous coaching staffs and remains close with both men. Fickell also knows Dantonio well.

Although it's a unique challenge at Ohio State, both Tressel and Fickell expect a smooth transition.

"The first time I was a head coach at Youngstown State, we were starting over how we were going to do things," Tressel said. "That's a little bit more preparation-oriented than if you walked in the door and say, 'We're going to do things like we've always done 'em. I just have to be the one who calls timeout.' He'll do fine.

"Even the greatest artist was a beginner once, and he's going to be a beginner."

Buckeyes players admit it will be odd not seeing Tressel on the sideline. But they have confidence in Fickell.

"Everything will be under control," defensive end Nathan Williams said. "Coach Tressel, he'll have our minds right, and coach Fickell will do a great job being that leader he is."

Some will view the first five games as a preview of Fickell's head-coaching ability. He's viewed as a rising star in the profession and boasts the pedigree, recruiting skills and charisma to succeed in a lead role, perhaps some day at Ohio State.

But Fickell's goal is simple: steady the ship for five Saturdays through some potentially choppy water until the skipper gets back.

"Sometimes adversity only makes you better," he said. "It's going to make me work even harder."

As the Jim Tressel saga continues to unfold, much of the focus is on big-picture issues that could have an impact well beyond the 2011 football season.

• What will the NCAA decide after its investigation into Tressel?
[+] Enlarge
Greg Bartram/US PresswireOhio State must decide how to delegate the game-day duties of head coach Jim Tressel while he serves a suspension next season.
• How will Ohio State respond to potentially severe penalties and public pressure?
• Are Tressel's days numbered at the helm of the Buckeyes, or will one of the most dominant coaches in Big Ten history survive this mess?

We'll have plenty of time to debate these questions and others, but as Ohio State kicks off spring practice this week, it's time to (briefly) turn the focus back to football and the upcoming season.

Let's start with this: Who calls Ohio State's offensive plays during Tressel's suspension this fall?

Tressel always has maintained the Buckeyes' offensive play-calling is a collaborative effort between himself and his offensive assistants. The Vest always has had final say on what the Buckeyes run, and he remains very much in control of the plan throughout games. Ohio State has an offensive coordinator in Jim Bollman, who contributes to the scheme, but Bollman lacks the play-calling carte blanche of, say, Wisconsin offensive coordinator Paul Chryst or Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn. Receivers coach/assistant head coach Darell Hazell appeared to become more involved in offensive play-calling the past two seasons.

Still, if you had to put a name next to title "Ohio State offensive playcaller," you probably would go with Jim Tressel. But Tressel won't be making any calls on the first five Saturdays this fall, and possibly longer.

Hazell might have been the perfect solution for Ohio State. As the team's assistant head coach, Hazell likely would have handled most of Tressel's duties on Saturdays, possibly including final say on offensive play calls. Turns out, Hazell will be a head coach this fall -- for Kent State.

That leaves five Buckeyes offensive assistants:

• Bollman, offensive coordinator/offensive line
• Nick Siciliano, quarterbacks
• Dick "Doc" Tressel, running backs
• Stan Drayton, wide receivers
• John Peterson, tight ends

Bollman and Doc Tressel, a former head coach at Division III Hamline University, look like the top two options for offensive play-calling. Drayton is entering his first season at Ohio State and will be working with receivers for the first time. Siciliano and Peterson haven't held coordinator posts.

How will the offense change with Bollman and/or Doc Tressel calling plays? Keep in mind Ohio State also will be dealing with a new starting quarterback for the first chunk of the season.

Make no mistake: Jim Tressel will strongly influence the scheme as long as he's allowed to participate in game week. But another coach will have final say and make in-game adjustments, which could have a significant effect on the first half of Ohio State's season.

There will be plenty of new faces on the sideline for non-AQ teams this season. Today I will take a look at the new coaches who have been hired and how they rate.

First up: MAC

Ball State: Pete Lembo.
Rating: Questionable. The Cardinals went off the grid and hired Lembo, who spent the past five seasons at FCS Elon. Before that, he was at FCS Lehigh. In fact, Lembo has never been a head coach or assistant on the FBS level and has no ties to the area in recruiting. The program is not exactly in the best shape, either, though Brady Hoke proved the right coach can win there. Lembo was a winner at Elon and Lehigh, but there are questions about whether he can win on this level without any experience.

Kent State: Darrell Hazell.
Rating: Love it. Hazell has done a terrific job as an assistant at Ohio State and has deep recruiting ties here. That should help, along with his outgoing personality and reputation among players who love playing for him. The Golden Flashes only have one bowl appearance in their history, but Hazell could be the man to change all that. His former players love him, too. Anthony Gonzalez called him an "unbelievable coach" and Ted Ginn said in an Akron Beacon-Journal column that he was "like my everything."

Miami (Ohio): Don Treadwell
Rating: Love it. Treadwell did just fine when he filled in for Mark Dantonio at Michigan State this past season, coaching from the sideline in four wins. It was his performance in those games while Dantonio recovered from a heart attack that helped land him the job. Treadwell is a graduate of Miami, so he understands the tradition. Given his background and knowledge, he should be able to keep the RedHawks in contention in the MAC.

Northern Illinois: Dave Doeren
Rating: Like it. Doeren has spent the past five seasons at Wisconsin and has had stints on the high school, FCS and FBS level. He has done a good job with the Badgers' defense, but nobody would call his unit this past season "lights out." However, his defensive mentality fits right in at Northern Illinois. Jerry Kill did a great job in his three seasons there, leaving Doeren a program that is in good shape. Doeren should be familiar with the area, which will help in recruiting.

Temple: Steve Addazio
Rating: Questionable. I am not sure what to make of this hire, to be honest. I am very familiar with the Gators' program, and was never impressed with Addazio as offensive coordinator in Gainesville (I know fans were not, either). Even with Tim Tebow leading the offense in 2009, Addazio seemed unsure of himself in his play calling, and relied way too heavily on his Heisman Trophy winner. The question I keep coming back to is whether his mediocre performance as offensive coordinator at Florida will impact how he does as a head coach. He clearly has the passion and the energy to be a head coach and has varied ties to recruiting in the Northeast. But how will he manage a game and an entire program?

College football is back! Whew! Who you got in the GoDaddy.com Bowl between Middle Tennessee and Miami (Ohio) tonight? Keep in mind the Sun Belt is 2-0 vs. the MAC in bowl play.

Now on to some links:

Brady Hoke fits the maize and blue print.

Michigan has not contacted San Diego State for permission to speak with Hoke.

TCU has a big party planned to celebrate its football team.

Boise State adds two more to its recruiting class.

Middle Tennessee hopes to cap its late-season surge with a win.

New Miami (Ohio) coach Don Treadwell met with his team for the first time Wednesday.

Vai Taua has matured into a Nevada back.

New Kent State coach Darrell Hazell has hired Purdue assistant Brian Rock as offensive coordinator.

North Texas quarterback Riley Dodge plans to transfer to an FCS school.

Brandon Doman will bring plenty of changes to BYU's offense.

USA Today continued its comprehensive look at coaches' salaries with a look at how the assistants are faring (not too bad, despite a down economy).

The number of assistant coaches earning $250,000 or more is on the rise, particularly in the SEC, but what strikes me is the Big Ten's absence among the very top earners. No Big Ten assistant ranks among the top 10 nationally in salary and only Illinois offensive coordinator Paul Petrino ($475,250) ranks in the top 30 in earnings. The SEC, meanwhile, has 14 assistants among the top 30.

Are Big Ten assistants getting short-changed? Are Big Ten assistants inferior to those in the SEC? Why such a discrepancy?

I think the quality of coaching remains very high in the Big Ten and several assistants might want to get new agents. I also think that wild spending on assistant coaches is less a part of the culture in the Big Ten than it is in the SEC, Big 12 or even ACC. Will we ever see a Big Ten coordinator make more than $900,000, like Will Muschamp did at Texas, or more than $500,000? Perhaps we will, but I think it's doubtful.

There are also quite a few top assistants at big-time programs in the Big Ten who don't seem likely to make the jump to head-coaching positions elsewhere. While we've seen Big Ten assistants like Wisconsin's Dave Doeren and Ohio State's Darrell Hazell land top jobs this month, there aren't a ton of red-hot coaching prospects in the Big Ten.

It's interesting to see the discrepancy.

Who are the Big Ten's highest-paid assistants? Check 'em out:

(Note: As a private institution, Northwestern doesn't have to reveal coaches' salaries; Penn State declined to provide coaches' salary information.)

1. Illinois offensive coordinator Paul Petrino (total compensation: $475,250, maximum bonus: $39,000)

2. Wisconsin offensive coordinator Paul Chryst (total compensation: $361,094, maximum bonus: $122,500)

3. Illinois defensive coordinator Vic Koenning (total compensation: $325,120, maximum bonus: $26,000)

4. Ohio State offensive coordinator Jim Bollman (total compensation: $311,500, maximum bonus: $50,550)

5. Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Heacock (total compensation: $309,000, maximum bonus: $51,500)

6. Minnesota defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove (total compensation: $305,000, maximum bonus: $0)

7. Michigan offensive coordinator Calvin Magee (total compensation: $282,100, maximum bonus: $0)

8. Michigan defensive coordinator Greg Robinson (total compensation: $277,100, maximum bonus: $0)

9. Ohio State assistant head coach/receivers coach Darrell Hazell (total compensation: $264,800, maximum bonus: $48,133)

10. Iowa offensive coordinator Ken O'Keefe (total compensation: $260,524, maximum bonus: $0)

Nebraska's highest-paid assistants are offensive coordinator Shawn Watson ($380,000 salary, $130,833 maximum bonus) and defensive coordinator Carl Pelini ($375,000 salary, $129,375 maximum bonus).

Illinois' decision to spend big bucks for its new coordinators plays out here. It's interesting that for a defense-oriented league like the Big Ten, three of the four highest-paid assistants are offensive coordinators.

The Big Ten's biggest assistant coach bargain in 2010: Michigan State offensive coordinator Don Treadwell ($235,250), who led the team during coach Mark Dantonio's absence. All but one of Ohio State's assistants makes more than Treadwell.

Another major bargain is Wisconsin running backs coach John Settle ($129,792).

Your thoughts on the coaches' salaries?

Four bowl games in four days featuring non-AQ teams kicks off tonight with the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl between Southern Miss and Louisville. I picked the Golden Eagles in an upset.

Now on to some links:

Florida offensive coordinator Steve Addazio has interviewed for the Temple head-coaching job.

Utah WR DeVonte Christopher is enjoying a homecoming in Las Vegas.

With struggling kicker Kyle Brotzman, Boise State will face tough decisions in the MAACO Bowl Las Vegas on when to kick or when to go for it.

The S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl between San Diego State and Navy has already sold over 50,000 tickets -- a record for the bowl game.

Southern Miss needs a much better game on defense to have any chance against Louisville.

TCU running back Ed Wesley does a Q&A with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

New Kent State coach Darrell Hazell is eager to get going.

The hiring of Pete Lembo will define Ball State athletic director Tom Collins.

Hawaii may not be locked into playing in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl once it moves on to the Mountain West.

The Navy football program has not missed a beat since Paul Johnson left.

Ohio State assistant Darrell Hazell became head coach at Kent State on Monday afternoon. He replaces Doug Martin, who resigned at the end of the season. I just had a chance to catch up with Hazell, and here is a little of what he had to say:

What attracted you most to this job?

DH: Well, the people are the most important thing for me, making sure I get around some good people who have the same objective and see the vision we have to set out to go get things going. The second thing is the opportunity for me to run my own program the way it needs to be run, and the third thing is having an honest chance to win football games right away.

Why do you believe this team has a chance to win right away?

DH: I went and watched the film before I said yes to the job. There are enough good players here to be competitive. If we can surround those good players we have currently with a few other guys, we’ll be OK to compete next year for what we want to compete for.

Kent State has made just one bowl appearance in its history, the 1972 Tangerine Bowl. How do you begin to change the culture and mind-set of a program that has not had a tradition of success?

DH: It is a belief system you have to instill in the players and the whole organization. If you don’t have a belief system, you don’t have a chance. We’re going to change the image of our guys, the way they think, to have a balanced ego and walk around with their chest out. That’s how it’s going to start. Then we’ll talk about the execution and making guys understand why things happen the way they happen, and teach them throughout the whole process.

You are the first minority head coach in the history of Kent State football. How do you feel about that?

DH: I hope that’s not how I’m perceived. I’m very proud off my culture, my upbringing and my ancestry. I think we have to move past that as a society. I hope they see me for being a good football coach and a good person before they see that.

Much has been made of the issue of opportunities to get more minorities head coaching opportunities in college football. Have you thought much about that?

DH: I don’t put a whole lot of thought into it. It’s about the individual and how he prepares and gets his team prepared, and hopefully we continue to move in the direction that we need to, but it’s not about where you’re from or what religion you are. It’s about who the person is.

Why are you the right person to lead this team?

DH: I’ve studied for 25 years to do this, and I’ve seen a lot of things to do and I’ve seen a lot of things not to do. I’ve taken meticulous notes of how to be successful, and I feel that I’m really excited that I was given this opportunity to make these strides and take this thing to another level.

What is the biggest thing you have learned in all your time as an assistant that you will apply as a head coach?

DH: I think everyone talks about the discipline, but on Saturday what it comes down to is execution, how well you can execute when things are flying by your head. It’s the crunch situation -- what emotions are you going to call on to execute your job? Hopefully I can convey that to the team right away and have them understand you’re going to be in the thick of things and you’re going to have to call the right emotions to handle those situations. If you can’t, the little stuff won’t be able to be accomplished.

You will coach for Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl against Arkansas. Why did you make that decision?

DH: I feel like we’ve come this far as a team this year at Ohio State. We finished the season 11-1. For me to walk out on those kids would not be right. They were ecstatic I’d be able to coach the bowl game, so it all worked out. It’s a relatively quiet time in recruiting, and hopefully I will have some guys in place then to help me out with that.

Two new coaches join the MAC today: Pete Lembo at Ball State and Darrell Hazell at Kent State.

Now on to some links:

Two Southern Miss players injured in a shooting last month joined their teammates in St. Petersburg, Fla., as they continued bowl preparations for the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl against Louisville. Martez Smith, who was paralyzed from the waist down, did not make the trip. He had a bit of a setback and needed additional surgery last week.

BYU is excited about its future after its bowl win.

Keys for Utah to beat Boise State in the MAACO Bowl Las Vegas, courtesy of Utah State coach Gary Andersen.

Fresno State coach Pat Hill is proud of his team even though it lost in a big way to Northern Illinois in the uDrove Humanitarian Bowl.

The loss of an uncle has inspired Boise State cornerback Jeron Johnson.

Boise State has been deficient against the run of late.

San Diego State's receivers are set to face a stingy Navy secondary in the S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl.

Tulsa officials hope to break even on its trip to Hawaii for the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl.

UTEP coach Mike Price will return next season.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Few folks outside the Marshall locker room actually think Ohio State is in danger of losing tonight's season opener.

The Buckeyes are one of the nation's most complete teams, and their debut at The Shoe is viewed as the first step toward a potential national championship push.

So why should you pay attention to the game? Terrelle Pryor, of course.

Regardless of the final score, Pryor's performance against the Thundering Herd will be heavily scrutinized. Can he build off of his masterful performance in Pasadena against Oregon? How are his decision-making skills? Has he fully earned coach Jim Tressel's trust to operate in an expanded offensive system? Is he a legit Heisman Trophy candidate or just a byproduct of the college football hype machine?

Pryor is always the story at Ohio State, good or bad. He doesn't particularly like it, but he accepts it. He's used to being the center of attention.

"Everyone just praises you and holds you on a pedestal all the time," Pryor recently told ESPN.com. "Sometimes, it’s hard when you're getting more recognition than some of your teammates. I don't like that individually because I feel like everyone really should get the same recognition. But at the same time, that's the life we live in, the game that we play, and people love the quarterbacks and they put some people on different pedestals.

"You have to humble yourself."

Pryor sounds more humble these days, admitting that Ohio State's dominant defense has "bailed me out in a lot of games." The Buckeyes junior certainly has his share of critics, who harp on his passing mechanics and decision-making.

Many view him as overhyped and scoff at his 19-3 record as Ohio State's starting quarterback. Most agree that he has a lot more to prove this season.

"It comes with it," Pryor said of the criticism. "I watch a lot of Vince Young and Michael Vick and guys like that, they’re scrutinized guys and [critics] try to jump on people. I'm in the learning process, and whatever people have to say about me, that's what they've got to say.

"It's not going to bother me, it's not going to stop me from doing what my goals are and what I want to accomplish."

His short-term goals are simple: don't turn the ball over, make his throws in the right place and take checkdowns when necessary. Time will tell if Pryor is a better quarterback, but he sounds like a smarter one after two full years in the program.

"He's made light years [improvement] in his accuracy," wide receivers coach Darrell Hazell told reporters this week. "Understanding coverages, he's light years [ahead]. He'll be fun to watch this year."

Asked about the Heisman race, Pryor delivers the first of many stiff-arms this season.

"To tell you the truth, I just go out and ball, that's it," he said. "Lead the offense, put points on the board. It doesn't matter who we're playing. We do our thing, and we'll go into every game and execute, execute, execute.

"We do that, we'll be fine."

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

As the nation's economic crisis begins to affect even the Goliaths of college athletics, Ohio State is taking a fiscally responsible approach toward paying assistant football coaches. 

The Columbus Dispatch had an interesting story Sunday about how Ohio State isn't following the lead of other football powerhouses when it comes to assistants' salaries. Though head coach Jim Tressel received a well-deserved raise before the 2008 season, his assistants aren't in the same salary range as many of their counterparts, particularly those in the SEC. 

Tennessee's spending spree on assistant coaches to surround the million-dollar mouth, Lane Kiffin, doesn't jibe with Ohio State's approach under athletic director Gene Smith. 

"That leaves four Tennessee assistants making decidedly more than OSU offensive coordinator Jim Bollman ($275,400), defensive coordinator Jim Heacock ($260,510), assistant head coach/receivers coach Darrell Hazell ($236,250) and co-defensive coordinator Luke Fickell ($183,600) made the past 12 months. The other five members of the OSU coaching staff made between $162,000 and $176,000 each.

"The OSU assistants' contracts are now up for review and renewal. Though each is considered on an individual basis, the coaches can count on Smith not to jump on the big-bump bandwagon ...

"'For one thing, I think it's not right,' Smith said of the high salaries. 'And two, financially it's not being responsible with the dollars that our fans provide us.'"

Looking at the current economic climate and some of the salaries being paid to top college assistants, it's hard to argue with Smith. Although college coaching salaries are increasing across the board, the recent trend of paying top aides in the high six figures could be a dangerous precedent in a sport dominated by the deep-pocketed.

(Read full post)

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

When Minnesota head coach Tim Brewster checked into his hotel Tuesday morning in Shreveport, La., the woman working at the front desk spotted the Golden Gophers logo on his shirt and smiled.

"The coach from Michigan just left," she told him.

Both Minneapolis and Ann Arbor, Mich., are located more than 850 miles from Shreveport, making it an odd place for Brewster and one of his Michigan counterparts to cross paths. But these days, Big Ten coaches are just as likely to bump into one another in Shreveport, Atlanta, Fort Lauderdale, Fla. and Houston as they are in Chicago, St. Louis, Pittsburgh and Detroit.

When Purdue head coach Danny Hope called ESPN.com on Wednesday afternoon, he was navigating a road near Bay City, Fla. An hour earlier, Wisconsin defensive line coach Charlie Partridge phoned in from the Fort Lauderdale area.

The Big Ten recruiting range is expanding far beyond the Midwest, and coaches are spending much of their time in the fertile states of the south and southeast.

If one incoming recruit symbolizes the recruiting change in the Big Ten, it's a safety expected to sign Wednesday with Wisconsin.

His name: Dezmen Southward.

His hometown: Fort Lauderdale.

"There's certainly great, great players in the Midwest, but just in terms of numbers, all you have to do is look at Division I signing day and the number of kids who play Division I out of this region here," said Partridge, who has recruited the Florida area for Wisconsin, Pitt and Iowa State, among others. "You can come down and get two to three kids who can have an impact on your program.

"People are recognizing the value of recruiting down here."

(Read full post)