CHICAGO -- In volunteering a small piece of forgotten trivia, the longest-tenured coach in the FBS fulfilled two purposes.

Kirk Ferentz reminded everyone listening at Big Ten Media Days that he hasn't been in charge at Iowa forever -- just since 1999. He also complimented Rutgers running backs coach Lester Erb.

The fact lost to history is that Erb replaced Eric Mangini -- the former Jets and Browns coach -- as an offensive assistant with the Baltimore Ravens in 1997. That marked the first of 16 seasons that Ferentz, who was the Ravens offensive line coach at the time, and Erb worked together.

"He and I worked closely for two years (in Baltimore), and he was a tremendous asset and researcher," said Ferentz, who employed Erb at Iowa from 2000-13. "He joined our program and did a great job with special teams, receivers, and running backs. He'll be a real asset to the Rutgers program."

Erb's impact already has been felt in recruiting through his connections to certain areas of California, in scheming with offensive coordinator Jerry Kill and in mentoring a veteran-laden group of running backs coming off a season of underachieving.

"What he's brought first is a connection with the players," Rutgers coach Chris Ash said. "The players trust him. The players believe in him. He's helped them develop fundamentally.

"The second part of it is he understands the big picture. He understands schemes. Between him and Jerry working together, they've done a great job of developing our offense to what it is today. But it starts with the relationships with the players, and he's done a great job of that."

Erb's rise through the coaching ranks started because Ted Marchibroda -- the Ravens head coach in 1997 -- knew of Erb through a network tied into the Buffalo Bills and Syracuse.

Ash, an Iowa native who coached at Iowa State (2000-06, 2009), hired Erb in January. Erb was on the market because of a coaching regime change at Nevada, and Ash was seeking a veteran assistant to replace former running backs coach Zak Kuhr as he moved on to Texas State.

"Lester is kind of like what I was at one point: He's out at Nevada for a couple years and was recruiting California," Ash said. "When you take over a new job, the first thing you do is you go back to the previous players that you knew about.

"I did that when I became ahead coach. I've done that at all the assistant stops that I've made. Lester had some relationships and knew some players that he thought would help our football team, so we went to recruit them. That's what everybody does, and that's what we'll continue to do."

Not only did Erb secure the late signings of the only two running backs in the 2017 recruiting class, Rutgers earned commitments from California quarterbacks Jalen Chatman and Sean Chambers for 2018.

"Coach Ash has said, 'I want you recruiting quarterbacks,'" Kill said speaking only in general terms. "I'll take Lester along because he's got a great background in quarterbacks, too. If I need him to come, I'll say, 'I'm not sure. Why don't you fly in?' We'll work together on that."

Erb's real test will be maximizing the production from senior tailbacks Robert Martin, Josh Hicks and Gus Edwards, who combine for 4,070 rushing yards and 31 offensive touchdowns. Will there be enough touches to keep all three happy? If not, how does he handle whoever falls behind?

Ash doesn't sound worried.

"Lester is kind of like Jerry -- an experienced football coach," Ash said. "He's had a lot of successful stops along the way."

Ryan Dunleavy may be reached at rdunleavy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rydunleavy. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.