As the dust settles after the hiring of Paul Wulff at WSU, many fans have weighed in on the selection. Some absolutely love it, based on his excellence at the Division-1AA level (or is it the Football Sub-Division, to be politically correct?). But there are some that don't like it, and the leg they are standing on has to do with no success at the Division-1A level as either an assistant, a coordinator or a head coach. But to understand that Wulff is the right choice, there are a lot of facts to consider beyond just dismissing his lack of Division-1 successes. Wulff did turn in a 53-40 record at Eastern Washington University, a program with a tiny budget and a stadium smaller than many high school stadiums in Texas (capacity: 8,000). Out of eight seasons as head coach at EWU, he had seven winning years, and has taken the Eagles to the playoffs in three of the last four years. He's won Big Sky Coach of the Year honors on three occasions. His offenses are exciting and explosive, and he and his assistants have great reputations for "coaching 'em up". This year, his true sophomore QB, Matt Nichols, threw for an astounding 3744 yards and 34 touchdowns running a no-huddle spread offense. And the Eagles lost by just three points in the playoffs at Appalachian State, your three-time defending Division-1AA/Football Sub-Division champions.
All that stuff is great, but that's just what he's done on the field. Off the field, Wulff is a fascinating story of overcoming adversity at a very early stage of life.
