Minnesota coach Jerry Kill talks with reporters during Big Ten football Media Days in Chicago.
With a track record that includes some very good football work done at both Northern and Southern Illinois universities, Jerry Kill's qualifications as a gridiron boss are evident.
But if this coaching thing doesn't continue working out for him, he may want to consider a future career in marketing.
Kill has inherited another reclamation-project at Minnesota, a job seemingly made tougher by the school's northern locale. The state is not known as a football hotbed.
That hasn't deterred Kill, however, from enthusiastically touting its positive features.
"I had no idea what the state of Minnesota offered," he said at Friday's Big Ten media day. "We have more shoreline than the state of Florida does. We have 21 Fortune 500 companies, it's clean, and there's tons of things to do.
"Once you get somebody on campus and they see what you have, you can overcome some of (the perceived negatives). I'm not going to beg anybody to come. You win with people that want to be there, and once you start winning, all those things become a lot easier."
The long road back : Five years ago, Arthur Ray's football future seemed as bright as a starlet's smile.
These days, the Mt. Carmel grad is simply glad he's been able to step back on the field.
That's something he hadn't done since January 2007. A cancerous tumor in his left leg led to multiple surgeries and two years spent on crutches, but the 300-pound lineman finally suited up for Michigan State's spring game.
Ray's appearance amounted to just two snaps, but that was enough to impress Spartans coach Mark Dantonio.
"I'm not surprised (about his return) because that's the type of person he's been throughout the whole process, but I am amazed at the progress he's made," Dantonio said. "It was an extremely serious situation, but he's to the point now where he can actually run, move, cut and do the things you need to do.
No historical significance : Once upon a time, Northwestern was the Big Ten school that couldn't win consistently, but those days are long gone. The Wildcats have made three consecutive bowl appearances and pieced together four straight non-losing seasons, and coach Pat Fitzgerald would like older fans recognize that rather than rehash the bad old days.
"I was at a function this summer and I said, 'I just wish everybody that's a football fan over 40 would just pass by,'" he joked. "Anybody I'm recruiting has no idea, so shut up. Move on. It's over.
"With this technology today, they know what happened yesterday. I guarantee Coach (Joe) Paterno can tell you what he did 50 years ago; history was a week ago to these guys."
Star gazing : Some kids in Northwest Indiana probably emulate Purdue defensive back Albert Evans when they toss around a football, but the Portage grad showed he's also attracted by star power.
Evans briefly disappeared from his table during Friday's two-hour interview session at Big Ten Media Day. The reason? He wanted to take a picture of legendary Penn State coach Joe Paterno.
Holding out for some heroes : When Iowa and Nebraska meet on Nov. 25, the contest won't feature just football heroes.
The schools announced plans Friday to annually recognize one citizen in each state for extraordinary acts prior to the "Heroes Game." Honorees will have their name and hometown etched on the to-be-created trophy, and be guests of the two teams on game day.
The "Heroes Game" will also raise funds for a non-profit organization in both Iowa and Nebraska. The initial beneficiary will be their respective chapters of the American Red Cross.
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