Kirk Ferentz: Where Does He Rank Among Big Ten Coaches?
By Jeremy Karll
No. 12 – Chris Ash, Rutgers Scarlet Knights (2-6)
The former Ohio State defensive coordinator Chris Ash has had a rocky start to his head coaching career at Rutgers, but to no fault of his own. Sure, the Scarlet Knights lost their first four conference games by a combined score of 174-14, but Ash coached without his top playmaker Janarion Grant on an already underwhelming roster.
Besides, Rutgers only lost by seven to Iowa and were a late field goal away from beating Minnesota. Rutgers is a long ways from being relevant, but its way too early to have an honest opinion on Chris Ash.
Rutgers’ roster is extremely underwhelming with very few standouts on either side of the ball, and we have yet to see one of his recruiting classes.
The class of 2017, his first recruiting class as Rutgers head coach, is already proving why Rutgers has so much confidence in him. He has three-four star commitments, compared to none in 2015. It’s the most four star recruits Rutgers has landed since 2013 when they landed four, and that came after back-to-back 9-4 seasons.
With Michigan and Ohio State poaching New Jersey players, it makes it harder on Rutgers. That being said, Ash has still put together the 24th best class in 2017, ahead of Washington and Nebraska, and top recruits will start giving Rutgers more consideration when they start winning.
Rutgers handed Chris Ash a mess and he’s just trying to get through the first couple of years before his recruits start to come in. Rutgers is the laughing-stock of the Big Ten this year, but the Urban Meyer product will have plenty of success in the near future. He’s ranked this low because he hasn’t had enough time to prove himself yet.