"If there is a Josh McDaniels of the front office, it’s his former college teammate, Nick Caserio.

Caserio, a 32-year-old Ohio native and John Carroll grad, is next in line to replace Scott Pioli as vice president of player personnel, and though nothing is official, he is expected to be promoted shortly. He has been gaining traction in league circles as a viable general manager candidate in his own right, with Cleveland Browns owner Randy Lerner on record that Caserio is someone he potentially would like to interview.

Caserio currently is the Patriots [team stats] director of player personnel. A promotion to Pioli’s job would presumably quell the Cleveland talk.

So who is he?

Other than a stint in 2007 as a wide receivers coach, Caserio has spent virtually his entire eight-year Pats career either in scouting or the front office. He spent three years (2004-06) as the team’s director of pro personnel.

Caserio comes from a football background, even if he never played beyond college. He was a standout quarterback at Division 3 John Carroll, going 33-7-2 as a four-year starter and forcing McDaniels to wide receiver. One of their teammates was Washington Redskins linebacker London Fletcher.

A three-time all-conference and all-academic selection, Caserio graduated with a degree in finance before earning his MBA from Saginaw Valley State, where he served as a graduate assistant in 1999 and 2000. Caserio was working at Merrill Lynch when the coaching bug bit him, so he joined the Patriots scouting department in 2001."