Arizona Football: Kevin Sumlin is perfect hire for Wildcats

Arizona football made a big-time hire to replace Rich Rodriguez on Sunday afternoon in former Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin.

The Rich Rodriguez era came to a screeching halt last week after he was accused of wrongdoings off the field. He took heat for not acting in a professional manner and his time in Tucson was cut short. Since then, Arizona had been looking for the perfect replacement and the Wildcats have found him.

Kevin Sumlin has reportedly been hired by the Wildcats to become the next head coach, and it’s what you’d call a splash hire.

The Wildcats needed a coach who could relate to his players and show that he’s willing to change and adapt with the direction of college football. Although Sumlin didn’t succeed in his final years at Texas A&M — under the Aggies’ standards — he did connect with his players and bring the Aggies close to contention.

Unfortunately, there seemed to be a ceiling for him in College Station, but the SEC is not an easy conference to win consistently in, especially with programs like Alabama, Auburn, Georgia and LSU constantly competing at high levels.

Sumlin might fit in well in the Pac-12 where he can contend more consistently with USC being the top competition in the South division.

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The former Texas A&M coach had a 35-17 record at Houston before getting the job with the Aggies and he went 51-26 in College Station. He brings with him an ability to recruit at a high level and likability that’s not matched by many coaches around college football. This is a tremendous hire for the Wildcats.