Sooner or later Steve Logan had to return to coaching. In a business where individuals often linger past their prime, the former East Carolina coach still is scratching the surface.

Young by industry standards and sharper than most, football has far from passed Logan by, especially where offensive innovation is concerned. As the game has evolved, he has tweaked his approach and kept opposing defensive coordinators in a constant game of catch-up.

No matter how you slice it, now is not the time for the riverboat gambler to cash in his chips.

But why NFL Europe?

On one hand, the temporary move across the Big Pond makes perfect sense. Conceptually, the league fits Logan like an Isotoner glove. By trade he is a teacher, and this would offer the chance to concentrate almost 100 percent on that skill without many of the peripheral detractions.

NFL Europe also would provide the perfect dress rehearsal for a possible career in its mother league. At one point or another, almost all college coaches get the itch to make the NFL jump, so they must take full advantage when those opportunities arise.

That goes without mentioning many of the headaches Logan will avoid by accepting a fairly anonymous assignment. Instead of dealing with envious, ego-driven administrators and attention-craving boosters, Logan will have free-reign to concentrate on what he does best — developing the skills of raw, but talented quarterbacks.

“The best time of year starts next Tuesday," Logan said two years ago in reference to Spring practice. "We’re all juiced up and ready to go. We’ve got our practice scripts ready. I can’t wait."

"It is the single best four weeks of the year for me,"  he added at the time. "You get to teach. No call-in shows, no TV shows. It’s just me and the kids. It’s just a great time of year.”

In Europe, that essentially will be the working climate, albeit with a few games thrown in for good measure.

Given his track record for molding unheralded QBs into professional success stories, there is little doubt that he will succeed. Whether or not it's his calling is a totally different matter.

Though the rules are largely the same, overall the pro and college games couldn't be more different. From style of play to the lifestyles and personalities, the pro atmosphere could be enough to put Logan on a fast track back to a college campus.

By and large, pro coaches frown on offensive creativity and instead embrace a simplistic approach. That mentality is most present in the play of quarterbacks, who nowadays are measured more by how they manage the game as opposed to big-play ability.

For every Peyton Manning, there are seven Jake Delhommes. Once the exception, mistake-free, vanilla offense has become the rule for deep playoff runs.

That ain't Logan's style.

While at East Carolina, Logan won with an unconventional approach. His wide-open system is best defined by its calculated risks, and its success is contingent on a dynamic field general.

Like former Washington Redskins coach Steve Spurrier, it's hard to imagine Logan adapting to a more generic method.

Perhaps the biggest hurdle will occur outside of the X's and O's, in an area where Logan arguably made his greatest impact as a college coach. Though most of the accomplishments to which fans often point are well-documented in the Pirates' media guide, many of his players point to their personal victories off the field as the most lasting impressions of their former coach.

Richard Alston and David Garrard both are examples of players who succeeded against all odds, not to mention the types of players in which Logan saw qualities and potential his competitors in the recruiting arena overlooked. He won't have that luxury in the pros, where curfews and mandatory mini-camps often are treated only as suggestions by talented prima donnas.

That all-about-me mentality has never flown on Logan-coached teams. The few unsavory characters who did enter the program did so on a short leash. When it became apparent that there would be no about-face, they were sent on the first bus out of town.

The consequences aren't nearly that severe at the next level. But the fast-paced lifestyle is far more prevalent.

Whether or not Logan can succeed in the pro ranks isn't the question here. Given his comprehensive knowledge and ability to impart that expertise to his charges, there should be no doubt.

Bottom line, it will boil down to Logan's happiness and whether or not he can find an enjoyable niche in pro football. Given the right situation, that certainly could happen.

But at the same time, it's difficult to imagine him outside of a college setting. Considering the amount of scandal that has rocked the nation of late, college football surely would benefit from his return.