The coaches who hold the key to the state’s best football players want Rutgers to hire an experienced head coach with strong ties to New Jersey -- and they are making sure that the man in charge of that search knows how they feel.

NJ Advance Media spoke with more than a dozen high school coaches this week from all geographic corners of the state, and while opinions varied on who should replace Chris Ash as the leader in Piscataway, the same themes emerged in each conversation.

“I think you need a name-recognition guy with credibility, somebody who can catch lightning in the bottle, get people excited and have credibility with kids," said Rich Hansen, the longtime head coach at Jersey City powerhouse St. Peter’s Prep and president of the Super Football Conference. “This can’t be an experiment. This has to be as close to as a sure thing as you can possibly get.”

Hansen is one of several head coaches that athletic director Patrick Hobbs has quietly contacted for feedback in the days after he fired Ash. That conversation, Hansen said, convinced him that the Rutgers athletic director was handling the early stages of what he calls “a critical time in the program’s existence” the right way.

Not surprisingly, one name -- Greg Schiano -- was mentioned more than any other in interviews with the coaches. Schiano, who took the Scarlet Knights to six bowls in 11 years, is someone who “checks most of the boxes,” Hansen said. Schiano, who left his job as New England Patriots defensive coordinator before the season, is a free agent.

“Greg did an outstanding job when he was here of keeping the Jersey talent home, and I think he’s somebody with New Jersey roots who has a tremendous background not only in college but also in the pros,” said Joe Martucci, a longtime coach in the Shore Conference now at St. John Vianney. “If I had a choice and he was interested, he would definitely be at the top of the list.”

But Schiano wasn’t the only coach that the high school coaches mentioned.

Dino Mangiero, a former Rutgers great in his fourth season at Mater Dei Prep, went to bat for Boston College coach Steve Addazio as “the kind of guy I think we need.” Scott Bray, the head coach at public behemoth Bridgewater-Raritan, thinks former Wisconsin/Arkansas coach Bret Bielema could recruit and develop the linemen needed to compete in the Big Ten. Montgomery’s Zoran Milich mentioned two outside the box candidates - former Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson and, yes, ex-Jets coach Rex Ryan.

Augie Hoffmann, head coach at St. Joseph’s (Montvale), said that former Temple and Miami coach Al Golden would recruit well in the state, while two former New Jersey high school coaches now on the Michigan coaching staff -- Anthony Campanile and Chris Partridge -- could make the step up to a head coaching role.

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“Honestly, I think it’s one of the most crucial hires they’ve had in the history of the school," Hoffmann said. “There are the obvious names that are floating around, and for me, the common denominator is Jersey guys. I think that’s very important. The formula that they had when they had success has not worked since Greg left.”

Several of the coaches were struck at how little contact they had with Ash during his three and a half years in Piscataway, especially after Ash promised they would be a priority during a 90-minute meeting during his first month on the job. Bernards coach Jon Simoneau, whose quarterback, Teddy Gouldin, is a potential FBS recruit, said Wake Forest is a bigger presence on the recruiting trail despite the obvious geographic challenges.

“Rutgers is 15 minutes away and it’s been seven, eight years since a Rutgers coach walked into my building,” Simoneau said. “When Greg was there, I got that coach. A coach came in. I told coaches I didn’t have anybody, and they just said, ‘Let me shake your hand, say hi. You got anyone in town? Maybe an eighth-grader’s name? Anyone you saw?’”

Added Bray, whose office at Bridgewater-Raritan is just 12 miles from SHI Stadium: “I have the most players on the roster (among in-state public schools) and I never talked to Chris Ash once. That always said volumes to me about some things.”

Said Summit’s Kevin Kostibos: “As football coaches, we try to steer our athletes to programs where they will find the most success. We coaches have a good understanding of program identities and academic philosophies. Creating that identity will allow Rutgers to pursue the most sought after recruits this state has to offer.”

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The next head coach, the coaches agree, has to do a better job of cultivating relationships beyond the North Jersey parochial powers. If the new hire lacks those ties, as Ash did when he arrived after a successful stint as Ohio State defensive coordinator, then it is paramount that he hires a coaching staff that with deep ties to the state.

John Fiore, the head coach at Montclair, said Hobbs assured him that the next Rutgers coach “would have real Big Ten money for an assistant pool,” something that any candidate with a coaching background at a Power Five school would likely demand.

“Winning at Rutgers requires a lot more than coaching football,” said Dallas Whitaker, a former Rutgers player who led Somerville High to a 11-1 record last season. “That’s not to say a New Jersey outsider could not win at Rutgers, but an individual with extensive Jersey roots is uniquely suited to fully understand the scope of work required for this job. Simply having won football games at another program may not qualify one to handle these challenges.”

The coaches agree that it is not necessary to rush the process as long as a coach is in place before the mid-December signing day. Rutgers currently has 10 commitments in its next recruiting class, which currently ranks 89th in the country according to the 247 Sports composite rankings.

“My phone was ringing off the hook as soon as all the stuff happened with Coach Ash,” said Union coach Lou Grasso, whose top wide receiver, Ahmirr Robinson, is a Rutgers 2020 commitment. “Recruiting is not the most respectful business in that way.”

But, for whoever gets the job, recruiting is going to be the most important job. After struggling to keep the top talent home for most of this decade, the men who run the state’s high school teams hope the next coach -- be it Schiano or someone else -- makes New Jersey his top priority again.

“We need somebody who’s going to understand New Jersey, recruit New Jersey the right way and provide an identity offensively,” Fiore said. “What is Rutgers football? We have to find our brand, and then maybe we’ll keep kids in New Jersey.”

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Steve Politi may be reached at spoliti@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @StevePoliti. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Keith Sargeant may be reached at ksargeant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KSargeantNJ. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.

James Kratch may be reached at jkratch@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JamesKratch. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.