It is perhaps the most bizarre and most sensible sports theory in quite some time. In fact, I didn’t know such a contrast was possible until seeing what Fox Sports insider extraordinaire Jay Glazer concocted last week.

And it’s probably better that Glazer wrote this after West Virginia’s loss to South Florida. Had it been earlier, Coach Rich Rodriguez would have been defending more on his radio show than just play-calling against the Bulls. Instead, he would have been trying to explain how he did not actually alter the fate of football in America this year.

You see, Glazer believes some unexpected occurrences inside the NFL this season can be traced to college football.

Believe it or not, one simple move that should have happened back in January — but didn’t — completely threw the stars of this season off kilter. This football season has been greatly altered by one man’s decision … a man who isn’t even in the NFL! Had the deal gone down as believed, many things about this 2007 season would likely be drastically different.

That man is West Virginia University head football coach Rich Rodriguez.

How, you ask, did a coach from the Big East alter this NFL season so drastically? Oh, just sit back and let’s connect the dots in the sportswriter’s favorite game: “What If.” It may seem a little bizarre on the surface, but just follow along.

Glazer goes on and makes a pretty neat argument. Before you dismiss it as silliness, remember that Glazer is very connected within the NFL’s inner circles. There’s a good chance this topic either originated in a conversation with someone who matters or was at least granted legitimacy by a person of the same stature. What seems so odd to us might be serious in some professional locker rooms.