Randy Shannon negotiating new Miami contract

Randy Miami has been going back-and-forth with head coach Randy Shannon’s agent on contract terms, with the process taking longer than expected, and the agent said to be seeking a salary more on par with other Atlantic Coast Conference coaches. But UM athletic director Kirby Hocutt said the extension — adding three or four years to the one left — “will get done in the coming weeks.” – Miami Herald

Randy Shannon still in line for extension?

Before the North Carolina game, a Miami Board of Trustee member said the administration planned to discuss a contract extension with Randy Shannon (beyond next season) after UM’s Nov. 28 regular-season finale. Unclear is whether a poor finish could risk that. – Miami Herald

Notre Dame ducking Miami series?

Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick said in April he wanted to renew the football series with Miami. But Swarbrick now isn’t returning calls, and UM believes he’s no longer interested because he never responded to two UM proposals (including a home-and-home series and/or a neutral site game). – Miami Herald

Randy Shannon in line for extension at Miami

After No. 11 Miami beat Oklahoma 21-20 for the program’s most significant win in several years Saturday night, Hurricanes athletic director Kirby Hocutt reaffirmed that the university has no intentions of letting Shannon slip away. Shannon’s contract expires after the 2010 season, but formal talks about an extension haven’t yet taken place. And any whispers that Shannon’s future could be in jeopardy are certainly nonexistent now. Randy Shannon is going to be our head coach for a long, long time,” Hocutt said. Hocutt has offered similar sentiments before and Shannon quickly dismisses any talk about his contract, even though he’s acutely aware that trying to convince recruits to spend four years at a school but not having any assurance he’ll be there past 2010 can be daunting. “Not worried about it,” Shannon said. “Really, I’m not.” But after this 3-1 start, there would figure to be motivation for Miami to get a deal done — probably around season’s end. – ESPN

Randy Shannon can breath easier at Miami - for now

Randy Shannon doesn’t sleep much during football season. Too many details, too much adrenaline and, lately, lots of late-night congratulatory phone calls. But he can sleep easier now. Two consecutive victories against ranked opponents on national TV is a sure-fire cure for insomnia. In these days of job insecurity, Shannon has removed himself from the hot seat. For now. – Miami Herald

Irish, Cavaliers, Buffaloes Eyeing Brian Kelly?

You’ll know if Virginia or Colorado’s AD read this interview if you see Hawkins or Groh fired in the middle of this week’s game. Brian Kelly, whose team is currently 2-0 after outscoring opponents 117-18 in the first two weeks, is gone. And if there’s any sense out there, this will be the biggest feeding frenzy in the coaching market since Urban Meyer moved to Florida… The only problem is that it’s hard to pinpoint a school that will need a coach this fall that seems like an upgrade from Cincinnati… Randy Shannon might get the boot at Miami if the ‘Canes season enters a tailspin, but that’s doubtful… There is, of course, the looming possibility that Charlie Weis gets cut loose, but Kelly was available last time around and didn’t get a sniff. Notre Dame might be the one place that would care about “fit”; the rumors surrounding Kelly’s abrasiveness and (gasp) pro-choice viewpoints might prevent him from being a serious candidate. Yeah, Weis isn’t exactly a peach, but he’s got a degree from ND, and that forgives you everything. So where is Kelly going to go? If Notre Dame doesn’t suck — likely — Virginia and Colorado might be the most attractive jobs out there. Prepare for Year Three of the Why Is Brian Kelly At Cincinnati mystery. – Sporting News

Randy Shannon off the hot seat?

Tonight is the game Randy Shannon has been building his past couple of years toward. it’s the one where Miami fans legitimately can say they’re on their way back. They aren’t there with a win tonight. Being back to Miami would mean running the table on these first four games - and I still think there’s some growing to be done before that. But Miami has put in enough building blocks for a win tonight against Georgia Tech. Scouts Inc. agrees in its analysis of the game — pointing out the beef on Miami’s interior being key to stopping the 1920s Georgia Tech offense. A healthy Eric Moncur at defensive end adds to that. What underlines the thought of Miami being back though is you saw some things against Florida State that you haven’t seen in a while. Namely, big-play makers at wide receiver. Shannon has been talking for a while about better recruiting. You can go down the list of receivers and see just what he’s talking about. – Sun-Sentinel

Miami, Texas A&M Eyeing Tommy Tuberville?

Randy Shannon, Miami - School record: 12-13, third season - Why he’s in trouble: The Hurricanes open with a brutal schedule — at Florida State, Georgia Tech at home, at Virginia Tech and Oklahoma at home. A poor start at a school that expects to win championships might tempt Miami to cut ties early to court former Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville, an ex-’Canes assistant. – Orlando Sentinel

Mike Sherman, Texas A&M - School record: 4-8, second season - Why he’s in trouble: Sherman took over an ailing program, but Aggies fans won’t be patient or tolerate of many more losses like last year’s stunner to Arkansas State. A&M was outscored 351-242 in Big 12 games. Tuberville’s availability could be a factor here, too; he was the defensive coordinator in 1994 when the Aggies went 10-0-1. – Orlando Sentinel

Randy Shannon Feeling Heat at Miami

(Randy) Shannon has lured some of the nation’s top recruiting classes, but fans are becoming anxious to see it pay off on the field. “It’s a lot of pressure on you, but you deal with it,” Shannon said. “Like I tell the fans, sometimes we may not win a game or play as well as we should, they’re going to get mad. I don’t get upset at it because they want to see Miami do well. I tell the players that, when you see fans get upset at you, they’re not mad at you because you lost, they want you to do well and be on the top all the time.” – ESPN

Rapid Fire: Focus on Shannon, Prince, Bellotti, Fulmer, Paterno

“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 five jobs which could soon be open…

Randy Shannon

Randy Shannon is 7-10 overall and 2-8 in the Atlantic Coast Conference since he became UM’s coach. But Shannon said Sunday he’s not feeling any pressure from UM President Donna Shalala or Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt. In fact, Shannon said it’s the opposite. Asked if he felt supported by UM’s administration, he said, “Yeah. As a matter of fact, they’re the ones that are always telling me to calm down. I get frustrated, upset, disappointed and they’re the ones that tell me that you can’t get disappointed about everything.” Shannon, who is in the second year of a four-year contract, said the Hurricanes are “a lot better” than they were last season after five games, despite two straight disappointing conference losses at home. The latest came Saturday when UM bounced back from a 24-point, first-half deficit only to fall to FSU 41-39. UM (2-3) was 4-1 after five games last season. “We’re not far from where we need to be,” said Shannon, whose ‘Canes play Central Florida at 3:45 p.m. Saturday at Dolphin Stadium. “Do I think it’s going to happen this year compared to next year? I’m only worried about this year.” – Palm Beach Post

Ron Prince

After his first 30 games as Kansas State coach, Ron Prince has a 15-15 record. But after watching Prince’s defense yield more than 1,700 yards during the past three games, many Wildcat fans are worried the program is reverting to the pre-Bill Snyder bad ol’ days and questioning whether Prince is the right man for the job. – Topeka Capital-Journal

Mike Bellotti

I hate to say it—I do realize there’s loyalty to the Oregon coach who’s been at U of O since 1995—but Mike Bellotti’s reign as coach should be ending soon. One thing can be said about his teams: They are all hype. When it comes to a big game, Oregon rarely shows up: 5-6 in bowl games, including a three-bowl losing streak, although they did win their bowl game last year. 131 wins and 77 losses is a pretty good record, including one conference championship and one tie for the conference championship. But look at the past few years, when he’s had a really good team that was supposed to be up there in the conference standings and was a supposed favorite for winning the Pac-10. This year it’s shown already, losing 44-10 to USC. It must be frustrating for Duck fans to watch a team with so much talent give up 41 points in a row. That’s inexcusable for a coach of Bellotti’s caliber… It’s time for a change in Eugene, and it starts with Bellotti. – Bleacher Report

Phillip Fulmer

Tennessee plays at No. 10 Georgia on Saturday, and a magical week of practice will be needed for UT to dig itself out of a cavernous hole. When asked if this was more of a must-win or a game of pride, UT Coach Phillip Fulmer didn’t hesitate. “It’s all of the above,” Fulmer said. “It’s not business as usual. This is a very important time for us as we fight like heck to stay in the championship mix and hope somebody else gets beat.” — Tennessean

Joe Paterno

The sad question to ponder today is whether there will be a day when a certain slice on the pie chart of fandom remembers Joe Paterno as the football coach who couldn’t look like a football coach, a guy whose legs were so riddled with pain, walking the sidelines became a weekly impossibility. This isn’t a Joe-should-retire column. This isn’t the time for that. Penn State is 6-0, has legitimate Big Ten title hopes and is coming off a game in which it made a slew of offensive mistakes and still managed to win at Purdue by two touchdowns, 20-6. It would be flat unfair to have criticized Paterno during Penn State’s down times, and then diminish the role he has played during the resurgence. Based on his qualifications and historic status and the kind of success his team is having this season, Paterno has a pretty good case for a contract extension come season’s end. The thing is, the fans and reporters around the program have been looking at the finish line of Paterno’s legendary career for years now. Listening to him Saturday, as he leaned on a metal podium in the bowels of Ross-Ade Stadium as if it were a crutch, you get the feeling that maybe Paterno is starting to see that line for the first time, too. “I’ve got a little arthritis,” he said, casting a frustrated gaze downward toward his left leg. “I take some stuff, and some days, I feel great. Sometimes, I don’t.” Saturday was one of the days he didn’t. As there always seem to be with this program and this man, there are some alternate theories floating around as to why there’s so much pain, so consistently. The main one is that he didn’t just tweak his right knee at all during that now-infamous onside kick drill in summer practice. It’s that he tore his anterior cruciate ligament that day, and now, it won’t get better until he has surgery. In fact, several reporters asked Paterno directly about surgery after Saturday’s game. Never mind the fact that it’s an unfounded theory. The leg Paterno says is causing the problems now is the left leg, the one that he needed surgery to repair after that sideline collision with Andrew Quarless in Wisconsin during the 2006 season. – Scranton Times

Next Page »