After watching him turn around a sad sack program at Rutgers into a Big East contender, the Bucs are betting Greg Schiano can have the same impact in Tampa Bay.

Schiano, 45, had been on the Bucs radar since the start of an exhaustive 24-day search for a head coach but they didn't meet until after Oregon's Chip Kelly agreed to become Tampa Bay's head coach before reversing course and remaining with the Ducks.

Although Schiano had turned down higher profile jobs at Michigan and the University of Miami in the past, and was a finalist for the Rams job before they hired Jeff Fisher, he said those other opportunities never felt quite right.