The case for Tom Herman as Maryland's next head football coach

Over the coming weeks and months, the Maryland football program will search for a new head coach to replace the departed Randy Edsall. We know who the candidates are, but who should Maryland pick? We'll state every coach's case, whether he wants the job or not, in 500 words or fewer.

Tom Herman, Houston head coach

The resume

Herman, 40, is still a relatively young man, but he's accomplished a lot. He's been coaching college football since he was a wide receivers coach at Texas Lutheran in 1998, and he's worked his way upward from there. He's been a longtime quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator, including a stint as the guru behind Ohio State's three-headed quarterback monster that catalyzed last season's national championship run.

Herman's massive success in Columbus netted him the head job at Houston before this season, where he's already building something nobody should ever be able to build at Houston. In addition to early on-field success, Herman's got the Cougars at the No. 36 recruiting class for 2016, which is three spots better than Maryland's best class in recent memory, which also happens to be for 2016.

The benefits

Herman is a fiendish recruiter. He's already bagged a commitment from five-star defensive tackle Ed Oliver, which is notable because it isn't supposed to happen. Houston shares a state with Texas, Texas A&M, TCU and Baylor. Five-star prospects don't play for the Cougars, except Herman's already convinced one to do exactly that. It took him no time at all. Beyond that, he's put together a deep class of three-star prospects who should help Houston stay near the top of any non-power conference team rankings for the foreseeable future. As an added bonus, he's used to recruiting in Big Ten country, which Maryland now inhabits.

He's also a quarterback whisperer. Herman obviously had a lot of talent on his Ohio State teams, but it's nothing short of remarkable that he was able to prepare J.T. Barrett on short notice to lead the Buckeyes to the College Football Playoff after Braxton Miller got hurt before last season. It's even more incredible that he got Cardale Jones ready to beat Alabama in his second career start, then Marcus Mariota and Oregon in his next one. Herman could've had Johnny Unitas himself under center, and that would've been impressive. Give him a spin with Maryland four-star commit Dwayne Haskins, and Herman could make some beautiful music.

The drawbacks

Aside from Maryland probably not being able to get him, because Herman could get almost any open job he wants? There's not much here. Herman might bolt for another job at some point in the future, but if that were to happen, it'd mean he did exactly what Maryland needed and won a lot of games. Herman only has five games of head coaching experience, but he's won all of them. He'd win a lot at Maryland, too.

In one sentence

Because of his his winning track record, recruiting and penchant as a quarterback developer, the notion of Herman as Maryland's head coach should make fans positively giddy.