Miami Hurricanes Football Coach: Who You Got?
According to reports, Randy Shannon is out as head coach of the Miami Hurricanes.
The rumor is, school president Donna Shalala and school advisers met with Shannon after Saturday's 20-17 loss to the South Florida Bulls. The official announcement will be Sunday.
The fact is, while Shannon was a class act who cleaned up the Canes like no other coach could have dreamed of, he was never able to return the school's football program to its winning ways.
After four years, he was just 28-22 overall, 16-16 in the ACC. The Canes never won the ACC, never even played in an ACC title game and obviously never sniffed a BCS title game.
While I personally feel that Shannon deserved one more year, I don't get to make those decisions. However, that doesn't mean I can't peek ahead and find a new coach.
Jim Harbaugh, Head Coach, Stanford
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The Stanford head coach is everything Randy Shannon isn't. He's not your father; he's your head coach.
Harbaugh doesn't work quietly with his arms crossed along the sideline. He's emotional and excited. He celebrates when good things happen; he yells when bad things occur.
Of course, he's also been successful where success hasn't always been easy to find. Like Miami, Stanford is a private school with limited resources. In only three seasons, Harbaugh has turned the Cardinals into a Top 10 team on the verge of earning a BCS bowl berth.
If he took over as head coach at Miami, not only would he find himself in the middle of the world's richest talent pool (South Florida), he would also take over a team already stocked with talent.
Of course, the problem is even Miami may be small potatoes for Harbaugh. Even before he turned Stanford into a Top 10 team, his name was rumored for half a dozen NFL jobs.
Chris Petersen, Head Coach. Boise State
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Over the last five years, no coach has won more games than Chris Petersen at Boise State. Since 2006, he is 59-5. He's gone undefeated twice, appearing in two BCS games (winning them both). He's won coach of the year twice.
Now someone will point out that Petersen has everything a man can ask for. He's never going to get fired, and he's loved by everyone from the state of Idaho. In fact, he's even said that being the head coach of Boise State is his "dream job."
Yet let's be honest: At some point he has to want to win a championship, right? Winning the WAC over and over again only strokes the ego so many times.
Lane Kiffin, Head Coach, USC
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Just kidding.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Mark Richt, Head Coach, Georgia
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Let's be honest: Coach Richt has to be tired of hearing about how he's going to be fired at the end of each season. The guy has done nothing but win, but since the Gators have won two titles, he's never going to get any love.
He's won 96 games at Georgia, including two Sugar Bowls.
The fact is, Richt is a Miami alum. He's a former quarterback of the Hurricanes, backing up Jim Kelly in the early '80s.
It may be time for the old ball coach to return home where he belongs.
Gary Patterson, Head Coach, TCU
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For the second straight year, Gary Patterson is going to lead TCU to an undefeated regular season, and for the second straight year, his team is going to be locked out of the title game.
Like Chris Petersen at Boise State, at some point that has to bother him.
If the University of Miami is looking for someone who is the exact opposite of Randy Shannon (at least in terms of sideline demeanor), then Patterson is the guy. One would think he's on the verge of a heart attack when he's coaching.
Some may argue that he's a West Coast guy and wouldn't know a thing about East Coast recruiting. True, but didn't they say the same thing about two other Midwest/West Coast guys by the name of Jimmy Johnson and Dennis Erickson?
Brent Venables, Defensive Coordinator, Oaklahoma
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Coach Venables is the Sooners' associate head coach, defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. He's worked under two great head coaches, Bob Stoops and Bill Snyder (Kansas State). His defenses are always nationally ranked.
Instead of trying to convince a head coach that's already successful at this level to come over, why not go after the next great thing?
Brent Venables is young (only 38 years old), he's a former college football player, he's a take-no-crap players' coach and he's damn good-looking.
Charlie Strong, Head Coach, Louisville
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He's only been a head coach for a single season at Louisville (going 6-6 his first year), but any fan of the Cardinals would say that the team looked a lot better this year.
Now Coach Strong is better known for his days as defensive coordinator at Florida. It was his defenses that helped the Gators win two championships, and it is no mystery that the D suffered when he left for Louisville.
The reality is, though, he's only been at Louisville for one year, and it is hard to imagine him packing his bags and leaving the Cardinals after one year...unless you're talking about Lane Kiffin, of course.
Greg Schiano, Head Coach, Rutgers
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Coach Schiano is part of the Cane family. He was the Canes' defensive coordinator from 1999-2000 before leaving to take the head coaching job at Rutgers.
Rumor is, if he had known that Butch Davis would bolt to Cleveland, he would have taken over Miami and not Larry Coker.
Of course, what he's done at Rutgers is nothing short of amazing. For you young kids out there, Rutgers football was the butt of college football. They made the Duke Blue Devils football program look like champions. They were bad.
In six seasons, Schiano turned the Scarlett Knights into an 11-win program. He's had four winning seasons, and he owns a 4-1 record in bowl games.
How did he do it? Bringing Florida recruits to New Jersey.
The rumor is he's waiting for his dream job, Penn State, to open up. However, since Joe Paterno plans on coaching until he actually dies on the sideline, I can see Schiano "settling" for the Miami job.
Dave Doeren, Defensive Coordinator, Wisconsin
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Never heard of him, right? At 33, he's one of the nation's youngest coordinators. However, in only two seasons, his Badgers defense has been one of the best. Last year, his D was fifth against the run nationally, averaging just 88 yards per game.
Now you might want to argue since he's only be doing it for two seasons, he didn't do it with his players. However, he's also Wisconsin's recruiting coordinator, so he's the guy who brings in the studs.
Mark Whipple, Offensive Coordinator, Miami
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This one is a long shot, of course, simply because Miami has struck out on their last two hires, both current Hurricanes assistants.
Also, Whipple's offense hasn't really been lighting the world on fire. Under his guidance, Jacory Harris seems to have taken a step back in his junior year.
Of course, if Miami simply fired Coach Shannon because they thought his laid-back coaching style was the problem and not so much the X's and O's, then Whipple, a former NFL assistant, might have a shot.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
