Houston Cougars Make Big Splash with New Coach Tom Herman

The Houston Cougars have a new football coach.

Please help us welcome to Houston @CoachTomHerman. Full info: http://t.co/8WkZq7WHig #GoCoogs pic.twitter.com/TDLNthMKKF

— Houston Football (@UHCougarFB) December 16, 2014

Ohio State offensive coordinator Tom Herman is the new man in charge. The official statement from UH Athletic Director Mack Rhoades read, in part, like this:

“Throughout this process, Tom Herman’s name continued to rise above the rest of the field. He is an extremely gifted football coach and his aptitude to lead and connect with his student-athletes is special.”

But I envision a scenario in which Rhodes is popping a bottle of bubbly in his office to celebrate pulling off the coup of the year’s college football coaching carousel.

First let’s look at the tale of the tape. Herman was just named the 2014 Broyles Award Winner as the nation’s best assistant coach. While leading the Ohio State offense the last three seasons, the Buckeyes went 36-3. And the offensive numbers are jaw-dropping. The Bucks averaged 45 points per game in 2013 and 2014. This year the were 5th in the country in yards per play.

Herman is also known as a “quarterback whisperer.” In 2012, Braxton Miller was the Big Ten Player of the Year. In 2013, backup Kenny Guiton had gaudy numbers when Miller went down with an injury. This season when Miller, who was a Heisman Trophy candidate, suffered a season-ending injury, Redshirt freshman J.T. Barrett stepped in. All Barrett did was set a Big Ten record for touchdowns responsible (a combined 45 rushing and passing) while becoming a Heisman candidate himself. Then when Barrett got hurt in the final game of the regular season, the Buckeyes turned to third-stringer Cardale Jones in the Big Ten Championship Game. How did that end up? 59-0 Ohio State over Wisconsin. You hear the phrase “next man up” all the time, but that is just obscene.

So we know Herman had his share of success in Columbus, so what makes him a such a good fit for Houston? For that we go to Herman’s history. His resume has 10-plus years worth of Texas ties. He coached at Texas Lutheran and was a graduate assistant with Mack Brown at Texas before stints at Sam Houston State and Texas State. Herman jumped back to D-1A (FBS) as the offensive coordinator at Rice.

And Herman kept a hold of his Longhorn State connections, landing some key recruits from Texas to play at Ohio State. That certainly caught the eye of Rhoades, who said in his statement Thursday:

“Tom’s ability to recruit at a high level is directly related to his genuine personality and how well he relates with all types of people. His dynamic leadership skills and experience and respect of high school coaches throughout the state of Texas will serve our program well.”

Herman is already assembling a staff full of Texas connections. Reports are Herman will keep current Cougars defensive coordinator David Gibbs on the staff; a good move considering the success of the “Third Ward Defense” during Gibbs’ tenure. Another report has former Texas quarterback Major Applewhite coming on board as the offensive coordinator. Applewhite has spent years coaching at Rice, Alabama, and Texas in addition to giving me recurring nightmares about what he was able to do as a player against my beloved Nebraska Cornhuskers.

But I digress. If you want another sign about how well-respected and well-thought of Herman is, just check out social media. Within a half hour of the announcement Herman was coming to Houston, Twitter was full of nothing but positive thoughts on the hire from the “experts” and Houston fans. Ohio State fans were posting well-wishes to Hermann by the dozens. Even OSU’s mascot got into the act.

Congrats @UHCougarFB THANKS & good luck @CoachTomHerman!

— Brutus Buckeye (@Brutus_Buckeye) December 16, 2014

Now it’s time for Herman to deliver in his first head coaching job. He will stay with the Buckeyes through the College Football Playoff. Then we will see how Herman’s brand of offense will work in Houston. Inconsistency on offense is part of what cost Tony Levine his job.

There are plenty of good options already at Herman’s disposal. Greg Ward, Jr. is the incumbent. He also seems to fit Herman’s scheme best, if he can improve on his passing. John O’ Korn is less mobile but can only benefit from a QB guru as a coach. Incoming freshman Ben Hicks out of Waco, Texas, also seems to be a good fit scheme-wise.

And here’s one for you – what about Braxton Miller? He says he’s staying at Ohio State, but with the success J.T. Barrett had combined with Herman leaving Columbus it could make sense for Miller to follow suit. It would be similar to what Russell Wilson did leaving North Carolina State for one year at Wisconsin.

Whoever is behind center in 2015 and beyond, it appears Houston has found an amazing fit for the program. Kudos to Rhoades and company for nabbing one of the biggest up-and-coming stars in the college coaching world.