Next former NFL coach joining CFB ranks should be obvious

After being let go by the Tennessee Titans after last season, Mike Vrabel needs to figure out what is next in his coaching career. The fact he did not get an NFL job after how successful his previous run in Nashville was doesn't really make sense. Although he may only have to wait it out for one more year, it would actually serve him quite well if Vrabel decided to return to the game of college football.

Vrabel is a distinguished Ohio State alum, having been a linebackers coach under his good friend Luke Fickell in 2011 before being Urban Meyer's defensive line coach from 2012-13. He would then leave for the NFL to be the Houston Texans linebackers coach before eventually taking over in Nashville in 2018. Depending on how he feels about recruiting, Vrabel could be perfect in college.

Besides his alma mater of Ohio State, another place where Vrabel could conceivably resurface would be Wisconsin. This is because Fickell will now be in his second season leading the Badgers after a brilliant run leading the Cincinnati Bearcats, which included an improbable trip to the College Football Playoff during the 2021 college season. Fickell can coach, and so can Vrabel. Make it happen, people!

While Vrabel is not going to replace Fickell at Wisconsin, what if he replaces Ryan Day at Ohio State?

Mike Vrabel would be a fantastic fit coaching college football in the future

If I were Vrabel, I would either lay low as a defensive analyst or something this fall before finding his next team to lead, or I would do the rounds on sports media. To have a weekly Vrabel segment on The Pat McAfee Show would change the game. This absolute stallion of a man would bring out the very best in the most toxic human being alive in fellow Ohio State linebacker great, A.J. Hawk. (A.J. Hawk!)

In reality, if Day were to fail this season with all those resources at his disposal at Ohio State, Vrabel would be the first person I would call to replace him. I may try to get Fickell back to his alma mater as well, but it is hard to see him leaving another great job in the Big Ten at Wisconsin, even if that was for Ohio State. Vrabel could go back to the NFL next year to take over at somewhere like Dallas as well.

The point in all this is Vrabel is too good of a coach not to have a job right now. He is one of the few head coaches who would work at both the college and pro levels. Being a defensive-minded head coach will unfortunately hurt his chances of getting another team to lead in the NFL. As for the college game, the best ones out there are defensive-minded, or at the very least are the CEO types.

Vrabel would also work at other college programs like Pittsburgh, Cincinnati or even over at Florida.