Zach Wilson’s splash of fortune is getting others a little soaked, too. And if Aaron Roderick isn’t getting a little drenched, well, he should be.
When a college quarterback becomes a high draft pick it brings acclaim to the coach.
This is certainly the case for BYU’s current offensive coordinator Roderick, who was Wilson’s pass game coordinator.
It was certainly helpful for Jeff Grimes, who left BYU at the end of Wilson’s junior year to get his first offensive coordinator job at a Power Five program.
It certainly helped the resume of Mike Holmgren to work with Steve Young and Robbie Bosco at BYU. Holmgren later went on to a sterling career coaching in the NFL when he left Provo in 1985.
After Norm Chow worked with Jim McMahon, Steve Young, Robbie Bosco and Ty Detmer, he parlayed that into jobs at North Carolina State, USC, the Tennessee Titans, UCLA, Utah and Hawaii. It didn’t hurt that his BYU work was duplicated with other Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart.
You get the idea.
Work with a first-round draft pick like Wilson, and the magic dust rubs off on others.
In the past few months, Roderick has spoken to representatives from every NFL team. Whatever contacts he had before, they just got reaffirmed or added upon.
And that can’t hurt things. Not for Roderick, not for BYU if he stays around and parlays his experience into recruiting.
Anybody remember what happened to up-and-coming Urban Meyer after Alex Smith was drafted No. 1 in 2005, and the uptick in his career after the Utah Fiesta Bowl win?
I’m not saying Roderick is loading up to leave like Grimes did, but after this week, Roderick’s professional reputation just took some shine.
“Well, it certainly doesn’t hurt,” said Chow, who now lives in Southern California.
“I guess if you want to capitalize on it, you will. I don’t know Aaron’s motivations or plans or if he wants to capitalize on furthering his individual career, but it wouldn’t hurt. What this experience does do is give you a lot more NFL contacts because scouts will call you and want your opinion.”
Chow said the calls Roderick receives — like the ones he got — are not about X’s and O’s or if Wilson can read and attack a cover-four scheme. “It is more questions about the quarterback’s personality, his work ethic, if he can take coaching and how he handles pressure and prepares.”
Chow said there is no question that when you coach talent that earns Heismans, All-America honors or is drafted high, a coach can parlay that into more money either at that school or a new job.
Chow did.
He’s not so sure BYU has ever chased coaches with money. He still has cards from then athletic director Glen Tuckett, written in his famed upper-case handwriting at the end of every year, telling him he’s sorry he couldn’t get him more money.
Chow was in Provo a week ago to see grandchildren and visited with Tuckett. The subject of those annual cards came up and they had a good chuckle.
He and his wife Diane figured since they left BYU, their personal wealth had increased 100% in 10 years.
“I don’t know if things have changed at BYU, they’ve always been fairly tight,” Chow said. “Maybe it has, maybe it hasn’t, but there is no question that if a person wants to use their success with NFL draft picks and contacts to make more money, after an experience like this, it can be done if you are willing to make the change and look for offers.”
Chow left BYU 21 years ago. Since that time, coaching salaries have benefited from the creation of what is called the “Coaches Circle,” a fund of legacy donors, and conduits to deep pockets.
Chow said he believes Roderick’s work with BYU’s offense, his play-calling, his development of the Cougars’ passing game, and his work as a QB whisperer with Wilson has been underappreciated by many.
“He did a tremendous job this past season and from what I’ve been told, he had a big hand in what happened, that’s for sure,” said Chow.
Correction: An earlier version of this column incorrectly attributed the Utes’ Sugar Bowl victory to Urban Meyer. Meyer was the Utah coach the season the Utes won the Fiesta Bowl; Kyle Whittingham coached the Utes to the Sugar Bowl victory.