Grading the Coaching Hires: Dave Doeren and NC State

Gone is the venerable Tom O'Brien as athletic director Debbie Yow looks to improve all of her programs from mediocre at best to annually competitive at the top of the ACC. So, in steps one of the hottest names in college coaching, Dave Doeren, who led the Northern Illinois Huskies to their first ever BCS bowl game following a 12-1 season and a MAC championship.  Before the Huskies could play in the Orange Bowl their head coach was off to Raleigh, North Carolina and saying goodbye to the Midwest - a place he's spent most of his life coaching in - to move up to a guaranteed BCS level program. Congrats to Doeren for parlaying an amazing season into a new job and a significant upgrade to his and his coaching staff's salaries.  However, critics may say he's only had a few years of head coaching experience and while 2012 was a nice season it may not be indicative of just how good a coach he is as he had a lot of built in parts thanks to the recruiting of Jerry Kill in ...