Frank Solich's impact on the Ohio program was immediate, as plans were put in place to renovate Ohio's football facilities and increase financial support for the football program. Also, Ohio was selected to appear on national television 6 times for the 2005 football season, a record for the program. Frank Solich's first home game as coach of Ohio was a memorable one, as Peden Stadium brought in its largest ever crowd on September 9, 2005, when 24,545 fans were in attendance to watch the Bobcats defeat the Pittsburgh Panthers 16-10. However, Ohio's 2005 record under Solich (4-7) was the same as the Bobcat's record in the previous year under Brian Knorr.

He began his career in the Nebraska prep ranks, as head coach at Holy Name High School in Omaha in 1966 and 1967. His 1967 team was state runner-up. Solich then moved to Lincoln Southeast, one of the state's top high school programs. In 11 years at Southeast, he compiled a record of 66-33-5 while capturing back-to-back Class A state titles in 1976 and 1977.

Prior to coming to Ohio, Solich spent many years as a part of the University of Nebraska football program, as a player, an assistant coach, and later as the head coach.

Solich was the head coach of the Nebraska Cornhuskers from 1998-2003. He directed the Cornhusker program to six consecutive bowl games, including the national championship game in the 2002 Rose Bowl. Nebraska won at least nine games in five of those six seasons, and finished among the top 10 teams in the nation three times.

Solich claimed Big 12 Conference Coach-of-the-Year honors in both 1999 and 2001, and was one of seven finalists for the Paul "Bear" Bryant National Coach-of-the-Year Award in 2001.

Despite his success, detractors point out that the program steadily declined from national prominence in each of his six seasons at the helm. After a stormy campaign in 2002 (7-7), he was fired by athletic director Steve Pederson despite rebounding in 2003 to a 9-3 record.

However, supporters of Solich believe that he was still capable of regaining Nebraska's status as one of the premier programs in the nation. They view his firing as a mistake. Indeed, some Solich supporters from Nebraska now regularly travel to Ohio home games as a sign of support for Solich.

Prior to becoming head coach, Solich spent 19 seasons as an assistant under Tom Osborne. In Solich's 19 years as an assistant, the Huskers captured three national championships, all with Solich as assistant head coach. Nebraska also won 11 conference titles.