Urban Meyer Steps Down: 10 Candidates Florida Should Interview To Replace Him
For the second time in two years, Urban Meyer is stepping down as head coach of the Florida Gators. Last year, he cited health concerns as his reason for wanting to step down as the Gators coach. A day after he announced his intentions to leave, he changed his mind and decided to take a leave of absence instead.
Today, Meyer cites his need and desire to be there for his family. In the report on ESPN.com he said, "I fully grasp the sacrifices my 24/7 profession has demanded of me, and I know it's time to put my focus on my family and life away from the field."
Assuming that this time his decision stands, that leaves one of the most prestigious jobs in the country with an opening. It will be a very attractive job for a number of candidates, some of them established, big name coaches and others who are on the rise in the football world.
Here are the top 10 candidates that Florida should try and get to interview for the head coach position.
Steve Spurrier
1 of 10
Steve Spurrier knows the university as well as anyone, having played for the Gators from 1964-1966 (winning a Heisman in 1966) and coached them from 1990-2001. He has never lost his love for Florida and everything that the university has meant to him. They know what he did for them when he was coach there, winning a national title in 1996 and 6 SEC championships in 12 years.
One factor working against him is his age: he is 65 years old and the Gators may want to go after a younger guy to lead their football program.
Bob Stoops
2 of 10
It's very doubtful that Bob Stoops would leave Oklahoma. However, if a job came along that was just as good and prestigious as the Oklahoma job he may consider it. If Florida were to throw a truckload of money at Stoops, he would have to at least listen to what they had to say.
Florida is one of the great jobs in America and Stoops is one of the great coaches in America; it only makes sense that there could be interest on both sides.
Jon Gruden
3 of 10
The Monday Night Football analyst has already turned down one college job, but let's face it, Miami isn't Florida (sorry Hurricanes fans). If the right college job came along, why wouldn't Jon Gruden listen?
Gruden's work schedule as a head coach has become something of a legend. He would routinely wake up at 3:15 every morning and study film and set up a game plan. With that kind of work schedule you know that he would have no problem working in the collegiate environment with recruiting and everything else.
If the money was right, could he say no?
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Mike Stoops
4 of 10
During his time as an assistant coach with his brother Bob at Oklahoma, Mike Stoops became one of the most sought after assistants in the country. He was hired by Arizona in 2004, faced with the task of turning around a program that was one of the worst in division-I.
He has brought the program back to respectability. Now, he could be looking to get a chance at one of the elite jobs in the country. He has the pedigree to be successful at a big time program—all he needs is the chance.
Charlie Strong
5 of 10
Charlie Strong has had three different stints with the Florida Gators coaching staff, in 1988 as the linebackers coach, 1991-1994 as an assistant and from 2002-2009 as assistant head coach and defensive coordinator. He coached the Gators for one game in the 2004 Peach Bowl after Ron Zook was let go.
Strong just finished his first year as the head coach at Louisville, where he led them to a 6-6 record and an appearance in the Beef O'Brady's Bowl (seriously!?). He has strong (no pun intended) Florida ties and could be given a chance to lead the program on a permanent basis this time.
Dan Mullen
6 of 10
Dan Mullen has become one of the hotter coaches in the country. He took over a bad Mississippi State program two years ago and has put together very strong recruiting classes and led them to an 8-4 record in 2010.
He has Gator ties, having served as their offensive coordinator/QB coach before taking the Mississippi State job. Surely Florida has noticed all the things that he has done and will want to sit down with him to see what he can bring to the program.
Chris Petersen
7 of 10
Another long shot candidate, Chris Petersen of Boise State will likely be given a call from the Florida AD just to gauge interest. His school has been the king of all the non-automatic qualifying schools, winning two BCS games in the last five years.
Maybe he decides that being the best of the non-AQ schools isn't good enough for him anymore. Maybe he wants to try his luck at a bigger football program. There are a lot of "maybes" involved with Chris Petersen, but it is a chance that he may want to take.
Kerwin Bell
8 of 10
Former Florida QB, Kerwin Bell could merit some consideration for the Florida position. He has been coaching the Jacksonville Dolphins of Division I-AA and has put together a very good program that won the Pioneer Football League in 2008.
He has strong Gator ties, he played for them from 1983-1987. He was inducted into their hall-of-fame a decade after he left. Working against him is a lack of big time coaching experience. However, back in 2001 when Ohio State was looking for a head coach, they hired little known Jim Tressel, who had been coaching in Division I-AA, and that's worked out pretty well for them, so why not give Bell a chance?
Gary Patterson
9 of 10
Gary Patterson has put together one of the top programs in the country. The TCU football program has been to two BCS games under Patterson, that includes this year's Rose Bowl game. He has built a program that can stand right alongside Boise State as the best of the non-AQ schools.
He is different from a lot of Florida candidates in that his specialty is on the defensive side of the ball. It probably wouldn't matter because he is such a great coach. Another factor working against Patterson going to Florida is the Horned Frogs going to the Big East in 2012. With them joining a BCS conference, it will make it more tempting for Patterson to stay at TCU and lead them to a national championship down the road.
Jim Harbaugh
10 of 10
Jim Harbaugh loves the west coast and is highly likely to become a head coach in the NFL sooner rather than later. However, that should not deter Florida from calling him to talk about their head coaching vacancy. He has put together an impressive resume in four years at Stanford, leading them to an 11-1 record and an appearance in the Orange Bowl this year.
He is a great recruiter and can develop quarterbacks as well as anyone, no surprise since he is a former QB. He has become one of the hottest coaches in college football, and Florida should at least gauge the interest that he may have in their program.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
