ASU, UA get different grades for coaching hires

In all, there were 25 new coaches hired in FBS, and Stewart Mandel of Sports Illustrated has kicked that reflection into high gear by assigning grades to those schools who participated.

Mandel's assessments turned out to be good news for one in-state school and not so good for another.

Mandel gives Arizona an A- for their hiring of Rich Rodriguez.

AD Greg Byrne knew exactly who he wanted, pouncing early (Nov. 21) in naming Mike Stoops' replacement. While Rodriguez's three-year tenure in Ann Arbor did not end well, the pressure is much lower in tradition-starved Tucson. He's reunited the majority of his staff from West Virginia, where he led the Mountaineers to two BCS bowls. Arizona is still waiting on its first.

The A- Arizona received was the third-highest grade handed out by Mandel, with only Washington State (Mike Leach) and Ohio State (Urban Meyer) garnering higher marks.

On the other end of the spectrum, there's ASU's hiring of Todd Graham, which got a D.

Forget the unseemly way he exited Pitt. Why exactly is Graham is a hot commodity to begin with? It's certainly not due to his one 6-6 Big East season. He had three 10-win seasons at Tulsa, but much of the credit belongs to respected offensive coordinators Gus Malzahn and Chad Morris. His one season without either, he went 5- 7. But perhaps his fourth dream job in six years will be the one.

Ouch.

Only Kansas' hiring of Charlie Weis got a lower mark.

Of course, this is just one man's opinion, but Mandel's thoughts seem to mirror those of a good portion of the national media who were turned off by the way Graham left Pittsburgh and Rice after one-year stints.

But let's remember that none of the coaches on Mandel's list have even guided his team through a practice, let alone played a game, so these grades may very well look much different a year from now.