Rapid Fire: Auburn, Penn State, K-State, Tennessee, San Diego State, Texas A&M Notes

“Rapid Fire” at Football Rumor Mill focuses on multiple coaches around the country who are in serious jeopardy. The latest edition centers on no less than six jobs…

Auburn

When a coach is on the hot seat, as Tommy Tuberville is, it can be a useful exercise to study a copy of that coach’s contract. Specifically, the section titled, “Termination of Contract of Employment.” In layman’s terms, the buyout. Everybody but Nick Saban has one, and not all buyouts are created equal. Tuberville’s buyout contains two key provisions. The first is well-known. If Auburn fires Tuberville this year, it owes him $6 million. Conversely, if Tuberville leaves Auburn for another job this year, Tuberville - or his new employer - owes Auburn $6 million. The seldom-discussed provision is just when exactly the side that files for divorce has to fork over the money. Tuberville’s buyout is unusual for two reasons. There is no discount if he takes another job, and the total amount is due and payable with two big checks within one short year. If Auburn fires Tuberville, Auburn has to pay him one $3 million check within 30 days of his termination and another $3 million check on the one-year anniversary of his dismissal. That’s a serious price to pay, and it’s one reason a divorce at the end of this drama is not a foregone conclusion. One well-placed Auburn insider this week said he expects Tuberville to return for his 11th season on the Plain. But will any of this matter if the Tigers lose their final three SEC games, starting Saturday at Ole Miss, to finish 5-7? Tuberville hasn’t lost to the Rebels since 2003 - there’s that Jetgate parallel again - and he has never lost to Georgia and Alabama in the same season in nine previous runs through Amen Corner. – Birmingham News

Penn State

Penn State coach Joe Paterno said the week off will give him time to have doctors examine his bothersome hip and noted that if surgery is required, he will have it done after the season so he can “get on the road and recruit.” There would seem to be a message there, that maybe the 81-year-old coach plans to return for yet another season. – Columbus Dispatch

Kansas State

Prince is 0-2 against the Jayhawks, losing 39-20 in 2006 and 30-24 last season. It’s no coincidence that, less than three full seasons into his tenure at K-State, many Wildcat fans are clamoring for Prince to be fired. Prince says he doesn’t pay much attention to the outside voices, and in this case, he doesn’t need to. The Wildcat coach gets frequent reminders of the magnitude of this rivalry from his inner circle. “I’ve heard about this game every single day, and it starts inside my own home with my four kids,” Prince said. “Everybody wants to win this game, including me.” No one needs it more than Prince. Beating a KU team that began the season ranked 14th in the nation would bolster the case for retaining Prince and ease some of the pressure applied by a restless fanbase. A loss, meanwhile, could be the final straw for fans already dissatisfied with the direction of the program. – Capital-Journal

Tennessee

His detractors and supporters agree on at least one thing: Phillip Fulmer is a very good recruiter. It makes sense, then, that Fulmer is trying to hang onto his job as Tennessee football coach by assembling an exceptional recruiting class for ‘09, which currently is ranked No. 7 in the nation by Rivals.com. If nothing else, this is a testament to just how good a recruiter Fulmer is. With the negativity surrounding the UT program and serious questions about his job security, Fulmer and his staff face an uphill battle in every recruiting tug-o-war. Yet, the Vols have gotten commitments from 20 players in 13 states. “If we can hang onto all those guys and add to it a little bit, I think there’s a reason for optimism,” Fulmer said. The underlying message: This is the recruiting class that turns everything around. Just let me get these guys in here and things will take off. Trust me. But there’s a problem. Historically, Fulmer has recruited well. Yet, the talent haul on signing day hasn’t translated into a high level of success on the field in recent years. Recruiting is one thing; developing talent is another. – Tennessean

San Diego State

San Diego State football coach Chuck Long recently made a rather bizarre observation.

This season, Long said, the Aztecs “really have done well from Sunday through Friday.” One problem, coach: Your games are always on Saturdays. So what on Earth do you mean? “I don’t want to go into our issues again. There are different issues when we go into games,” said Long, who has cited his team’s injury and depth problems on several occasions. “But we do like practicing with these guys,” he said Wednesday, elaborating. “They’re really attentive. They’re running around and have energy when they do it. We’ve had our moments in practice like everybody else, but (Wednesday) was a good day. It’s a good sign for the coaching staff, that they’re in tune with what we want to do.” SDSU’s record on Saturdays this year is 1-7. During the rest of the week, the Aztecs might be 8-0, judging by Long’s assessment of each week of practices. This kind of outlook tends to invite ridicule from critical fans who have been waiting 10 years for better results on Saturdays, the day that matters in college football. – Union-Tribune

Texas A&M

So while it might not be ideal for the Texas A&M Aggies to be playing so many youngsters in the brutal Big 12, it ought to pay off in a year or two, right? That’s at least what I asked Mike Sherman this week, as the Aggies prepared for their 1 p.m. Saturday game against Colorado at Kyle Field. “It’ll pay off for somebody,” Sherman said, chuckling. “Hopefully it’ll be me. I can’t do this too many times. But I’m hoping it will pay off next year, and two or three years down the road.” Considering Sherman is in the first year of a seven-year contract paying him $1.8 million per year, he’s good to go for a while — and will be provided ample opportunity to get this thing rolling again. – San Antonio Express-News