CHICAGO — When Greg Schiano was hired as Rutgers head coach in 2001, he offered Darrell Hazell the opportunity to serve as his wide receivers coach.

Hazell, a Cinnaminson native, decided to leave his position as running backs coach at West Virginia to join Schiano in Piscataway. Inheriting a program that had won 11 games in the previous five seasons, Schiano and his staff rolled up their sleeves and went to work to turn the program around.

It wasn't an easy process, as Rutgers went a combined 3-20 in Schiano's first two seasons. Hazell was promoted to assistant head coach before the 2003 season, when the Scarlet Knights finished 5-7.

"It was a great experience for me," said Hazell, who is entering his second season as head coach at Purdue. "When we got there in 2001 it was one of those rebuilding times. Schiano came and he brought me in and it was laying the foundation for the program. That's when it started taking baby steps. But it was a great experience for me. I'm from New Jersey, so it was great to be back home."

Hazell took an assistant coaching job at Ohio State after the 2003 season, but he kept tabs on Rutgers as the program turned the corner in the mid-2000s. He was hired as Kent State's head coach in 2011 and had a homecoming in 2012 that most Rutgers fans would prefer to forget.

Rutgers was 7-0 and ranked No. 18 when Hazell's Golden Flashes came to High Point Solutions Stadium for a late October matchup. Kent State intercepted Gary Nova six times in a shocking 35-23 upset.

"It was fun two years ago when I went back in there to play there with Kent State. Just to go back in the stadium and revisit some old memories," Hazell said. "That was a great win for our program, obviously. Rutgers was on a roll and we were able to get them that day."

The win helped boost Hazell's stock, and after an 11-3 season, he was hired by Purdue. He said the situation he inherited at Purdue was similar to his early days at Rutgers. He remains in contact with Schiano and has drawn on the lessons he learned at Rutgers.

"I think you take something from everybody's program when you move through the ranks," said Hazell, who went 1-11 in his first season at Purdue. "You learn and you learn what to do and what not to do. Obviously, that was a good stop for me."

Rutgers and Purdue are in opposite divisions, so they won't meet until the 2017 season. Hazell is looking forward to making another trip home, but in the meantime, he's proud to see how much Rutgers has progressed.

"I love the fact that Rutgers is in the Big Ten," Hazell said. "They've made such big strides in a 10-15 year period. It's just absolutely amazing. Just with facilities and putting themselves on a global map, they've done a really nice job."