Riley used to be the "hot thing". Kyle Whittingham used to be the "hot thing". Both would have made excellent candidates. Riley is very comparable to Bill Snyder. The one noticeable difference being once Snyder got KState rolling the school got behind him. Oregon State never really got behind Riley. His hiring was very shocking to me because he's repeatedly turned the big boys down in the past. I thought he'd retire a Beaver.
We're just not one of the top coaching spots like many want to believe we are. A lot of times there's something you need, but it's not exactly what you want. Mike Riley is that thing we need right now. He's a great coach, and we have a lot of talent on this team. My biggest concern is his age and how long he wants to continue coaching. If he's only a 4-5 year coach, then Eichorst or someone better have an idea where we're headed.