Tim Brewster came to the Gophers in 2007 with the reputation of being a big-time recruiter and salesman. His other program-building skills? Well, he had never even been an offensive or defensive coordinator at any level, let alone a head coach, so you be the judge.

That said, Brewster had a fairly soft landing after taking a year off following being fired by the Gophers. He was the wide receivers coach at Mississippi State for a year (the chili there was not particularly hot) and wound up in 2013 as the tight ends coach for your BCS champion Florida State squad.

More than that, however, Brewster has resumed his role as a top recruiter ... and is apparently a pretty good one as far as ESPN.com is concerned. The site ranked the top college football assistant coaches in terms of who brought in the biggest haul from the recruiting trail this year, and Brewster checked in at No. 6 in their list of 10. Here is what they had to say (Insider required):

What he did: It was an up-and-down signing day for Brewster -- two of his recruits bolted for other schools -- but the additions he brought in more than made up for the losses. On Wednesday, Brewster was able to sign No. 2 receiver Ermon Lane (Homestead, Fla./Homestead) and No. 14 offensive tackle Roderick Johnson (Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood Central). Brewster did a great job of battling for Lane through a number of twists and turns, including getting him to back away from a commitment to Florida. Brewster was also responsible for landing Cook, the top overall prospect in FSU's class and the nation's No. 3 running back. As recruiting coordinator, Brewster's fingerprints are all over FSU's No. 3 class.
Why recruits love him: "He said when I first met him he wanted to recruit winners. That's something that always stuck with me in the back of my mind. I wanted to play for a program that expects to win." -- Cook.

There were also TWO assistants from Alabama listed in the top 10, but none from Arkansas -- where old Brewster friend Bret Bielema is now toiling away.

H/T to reader Nathan for the link.