When Greg Robinson was fired as Syracuse's head football coach, I immediately started my own search for his successor.

In my head, of course.

I had some prerequisites for the position. And they were non-debatable.

First, he must be a Northeast guy. If not a Syracuse grad, then someone who is familiar with recruiting New York, New Jersey and New England.

My one fear was that the good doctor, Daryl Gross, would bring in a west-coast personality to spearhead the program. Considering how Rutgers and Connecticut have surpassed Syracuse in the recruiting battle, my supreme concern was getting a regional hire.

Second, the next Orange head coach had to be a college guy. Robinson changed my opinion on NFL coaches taking NCAA jobs.

I didn't like it.

There are vast differences between the college and pro game. We just spent the past four years watching G-Rob institute a pro-style, ultra-conservative offense. Syracuse needs to go in another direction.

Throw the ball down the field. Look at this season's more successful coaches - Mike Leach, Bob Stoops. These guys know how to air it out. That's what Syracuse needs.

Third, he has to have head coaching experience. It's one thing to make suggestions on the sideline. It's another to make the final decisions.

This one seemed like a no-brainer.

So let's run this down - Northeast guy, familiar with the college game and has experience as a head coach.

And with this criteria, my top picks, in order, were Buffalo's Turner Gill, UConn's Randy Edsall and East Carolina's Skip Holtz.

Doug Marrone was nowhere on my radar.

So when I first heard of the hire, I wasn't pleased.

Had Daryl Gross not learned his lesson? Marrone, the offensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints, has no head coaching experience and hasn't coached at the collegiate level since 2001.

I was absolutely convinced this hire was a blunder.

But not now. Marrone sold me.

During his introductory press conference on Friday, I couldn't have been more impressed.

Marrone isn't using Syracuse as a stepping stone. He's not using it to bolster his resume. And I doubt he'll jet off to a more prominent program in a few years.

This is it. This is his ultimate goal.

He's always wanted to be the Orange head coach.

Marrone showed up to his two interviews at Syracuse with ideas. Plenty of them.

He named assistants he wanted to hire. He talked about defensive schemes he would use. He talked of high school coaches that he'd kept in touch with over the years.

Obviously, this is a man with a plan.

Everything he's said so far has been on the mark.

He wouldn't talk directly about what kind of offense he planned to run - he said he'd wait to see what kind of talent he has and then adapt.

He said he won't serve as the team's offensive coordinator. Although he's known as an offensive guru with the Saints, Marrone knows his job at Syracuse is to manage - he'll leave the main offensive and defensive duties to coordinators. The way it should be.

He even intended to finish out his job in the NFL. On Saturday, the Saints and Marrone mutually agreed to let him out of his NFL coaching duties. Head coach Sean Payton talked glowingly of Marrone, but knew his time would be better served putting together a staff and focusing on Syracuse.

This is a man who is loyal and knows what it means to finish a job. Sure, he knew he should probably be at Syracuse, starting the recruiting process. But he started something in New Orleans, and he wanted to finish it.

In just a few days, Marrone has won me over. Of course, this all could change if the program fails to move forward.

But right now, it seems like the right hire.

In my head, anyways.