Miami Football: Why Al Golden is a Great Fit for the Hurricanes

Al Golden is new at the "U" and you can chalk one up for the Hurricanes in the win column.

The hiring of Golden at the University of Miami is a good one if not a great one, something to make up for that Homer Simpson "Doh" moment when Kirby Hocutt ventured all the way to Tampa thinking he just might hire the pugnacious Jon Gruden.

The Hurricanes have Al Golden and you've certainly got to go with the solid reasoning that anyone who can build a football program at Temple can surely do a crackerjack job with the Miami Hurricanes.

First, consider that Temple's football program was laughable before Golden was hired. The Owls went 0-11, as in NO wins.

Talk about a recruiting challenge?

Golden won only one game his first year but over the past two, he's put up 17 wins.

And see if this is what the new coach at Miami should sound like: "Al Golden just did not win games at Temple University but he built a football program," said Temple Athletic Director Bill Bradshaw.

The Owls went an amazing 8-4 this year and sadly, unjustly, did not receive a bowl invitation. And that's a crime seeing as they beat the Big East champion and BCS bowl representative UConn by two touchdowns.

How's that for impressive?

Golden is more than the right fit to boost the Hurricanes, he's the perfect fit. If he can recruit to Temple, then throwing a net over the talent in Dade County alone should be a piece of cake.

Miami is not a program that has a void of talent. There are many pieces to the puzzle scattered in a pile down in Coral Gables, waiting for someone to piece them into a picture that makes winning sense.

At age 41, Golden has fuel in the tank, experience and respect. He also improved the APR at Temple, which should sit well with Miami president Donna Shalala.

"From the beginning of this process, one candidate stood above the rest as the right fit for the University of Miami," is what Kirby Hocutt tells us.

Yes, all signs point to Al Golden and success at Miami.

He's been a solid builder. That's proved.

Now all he has to do is prove himself a rebuilder.

And he's got some nice material to begin the process and he's aboard just in time to take on Notre Dame.