Aaron,
Whenever someone asks me this question, the first thing I do is ask him/her what size fish he is going to be fishing for, whether summer, winter, or both, the size flies he expects to use most of the time, the size of the rivers he fishes most often, and the type of rod action he likes in single hand rods.
I do this because unless I have an idea of what he is planning on using the rod for the majority of his fishing time with it, he will never be happy with the rod because it will not be the best tool for his needs. If summer only is his goal, I'll steer him to rods in the 7-9 wt area from 13'-14'. If he is looking for winter only, I steer him to rods in the 9-11 wt range from 14'-15'. If he wants something to use year round for steelhead and perhaps coho or pinks, I'll steer him toward a 14'-15' 9 wt.
I almost always recommend a mid-belly line because it is not so long that he will have problems aerializing the belly after some practice while it is long enough for him to develop good solid technique. I also recommend to mid-belly line because his casting errors will clearly show up with it instead of being masked like is likely with short-belly lines.
Rod action I recommend to him is entirely dependent upon the type of action he prefers in single hand rod. If he has never fly cast before, I will steer him toward a moderate action rod.
As far as price range, it depends on how much the man wants to spend.
I also always recommend a person go to your Saturday get togethers for some instruction and to have the chance to cast several different rods of the size and line weight he ought to look at for his needs. And I recommend that he get some instruction from someone who is competent.