COLUMBUS, Ohio – Former All-Pro outside linebacker Mike Vrabel believes his 14 years in the NFL will help him as an assistant coach at his alma mater.

After several days of speculation, Vrabel officially retired from the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday and also announced he was returning to Ohio State as a linebackers coach. He’ll take the spot vacated by his former roommate and teammate, Luke Fickell, who was elevated to head coach after Jim Tressel was forced to resign on May 30.

Vrabel believes his playing days relate and translate to his new job. But that doesn’t mean he’ll often be sporting the three Super Bowl rings he won with the New England Patriots.

“I haven’t worn them since the day I got them,” he said at a news conference on Monday morning in the Buckeyes’ practice facility. “Once you win them, you don’t really have to wear them. People know that you won the Super Bowl and you helped contribute to a championship team. I don’t anticipate, you know, putting three rings on and going out on a recruiting trip.”

The 35-year-old Vrabel played four seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, eight with the Patriots and, the last two with the Kansas City Chiefs. He said working with so many young players on the Chiefs’ roster was good preparation for a coaching career.

“I got plenty of practice (coaching),” he said. “That’s a young football team. It was a great role to go out there and play. And not only help them on the field but help guys in the locker room and film room. I was blessed to have a lot of great coaches. But these last two years, when you’re coaching 20- and 21-year-old guys that are fresh out of college, that’s probably helped me the most.”

Chiefs GM Scott Pioli, who traded a second-round draft pick for Vrabel and quarterback Matt Cassel before the 2009 season, called Vrabel a winner.

“His genuine love for the game, his preparation, his work ethic, leadership and dependability are qualities you want from every player,” Pioli said. “He is a champion in every sense of the word and I’m confident all of these qualities will make him a great coach. I cannot overstate my respect for him as a person and a football player.”

Vrabel lettered from 1993-96 at Ohio State when John Cooper was the head coach. He was a two-time Big Ten defensive player of the year. As a senior in high school in Akron, his host on his official recruiting visit to Ohio State was Fickell.