Assistant coaches’ salaries spiking in football

Trickle down economics are alive and well in college football. With many contracts being negotiated or finalized, nearly a dozen schools in the NCAA’s 120-school Football Bowl Subdivision have made deals under which they will be spending at least 38% more on their offensive or defensive coordinator in 2010 than they did in 2009. These increases come a year after four assistants — Tennessee’s Monte Kiffin and Ed Orgeron, Texas’ Will Muschamp and Washington’s Nick Holt — joined Florida State’s Jimbo Fisher in having deals worth at least $600,000 a year. (Kiffin and Orgeron have moved to Southern California, and Fisher has become Florida State’s head coach.) They also come amid continuing financial distress within higher education. – USA Today

With Will Muschamp out, Vols could turn to David Cutcliffe

Will Muschamp, Texas’ defensive coordinator and head coach-in-waiting, has turned down a lucrative offer to be Tennessee’s new coach, sources close to the situation told ESPN.com. Tennessee athletics director Mike Hamilton continues to work toward having a coach in place by this weekend, and one of the candidates the Vols are zeroing in on now is Duke coach David Cutcliffe, who is a former Tennessee offensive coordinator. Sources told ESPN.com that Cutcliffe has talked with Tennessee officials, although he’s not the only candidate the Vols are considering. Air Force’s Troy Calhoun and Louisiana Tech’s Derek Dooley are two other coaches on Tennessee’s list, while the Vols might also be interested in talking to Clemson defensive coordinator Kevin Steele. Tennessee made a hard push for Muschamp and made it clear that money wasn’t an issue. But in the end, Muschamp felt like it was best for him to stay at Texas, where he’s already contractually in line to replace Mack Brown when Brown retires. – ESPN.com

Will Muschamp Declines Tennessee Offer, Stays at Texas

For the longest time Wednesday, Will Muschamp’s future was the subject of dueling Internet reports, from Texas and Tennessee. He was staying at Texas as the defensive coordinator and head coach designate. No, he was headed back to the Southeastern Conference as Lane Kiffin’s successor at Tennessee. Muschamp clarified his intentions Wednesday night. And without mentioning any other school by name, he seemed to make it clear where he would be. “I’m happy at Texas and plan to be here for a long time,” Muschamp said through a school football spokesman. He added that he has not interviewed for any other jobs nor does he have intention to do so. – Dallas Morning News

Muschamp Stays at Texas, Tennessee Regroups

Tennessee must move quickly to hire a coach with Lane Kiffin off to USC. Volunteers athletic director Mike Hamilton will meet the media at 1 p.m. ET Wednesday to discuss the situation. Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp won’t be a part of the search at Tennessee, opting to stay in Austin. Muschamp, who makes $900,000, is the head-coach-in-waiting at Texas to Mack Brown, who recently signed an extension that will take him through 2016. With Muschamp apparently out of the running, the top targets in Knoxville could be Air Force’s Troy Calhoun and TCU’s Gary Patterson. Each has enjoyed tremendous success, but neither appears to be a natural fit for the SEC. Each was involved in the search the last time the job opened. Former Tennessee offensive coordinator and current Duke coach David Cutcliffe is an option. Syracuse coach Doug Marrone is another possibility. He was the offensive tackles/tight ends coach at Tennessee in 2001. He also has extensive NFL experience. But Marrone only has been at Syrcause one season and may not want to leave the rebuilding job at him alma mater. – Yahoo.com

Will Muschamp Could Have Long Wait Before Takeover at Texas

Despite last November’s announcement that Will Muschamp, UT’s defensive coordinator, will take over for Mack Brown when he retires, that time does not appear to be coming soon. With four Top 10 finishes in five years, a current No. 2 national ranking and a roster and infrastructure capable of dominating well into the next decade, he has no obvious incentive to get out now. – Houston Chronicle

The Name Game: Muschamp Emerges as Leader at Clemson

“The Name Game” at Football Rumor Mill focuses on active coaching searches around the country. The latest edition centers on the Clemson Tigers…

Tommy Bowden, Clemson: The fit: Will Muschamp, Texas defensive coordinator. Played in the South, coached and recruited in the South and is a young version of Nick Saban. What’s not to like? – Sporting News

Texas Longhorns defensive coordinator Will Muschamp is the current favorite to replace Tommy Bowden as head coach at Clemson University, sources tell FITS. A former standout defensive back at the University of Georgia, Muschamp has held defensive coaching positions at LSU, Auburn and Texas, among other college programs, and was the Miami Dolphins assistant head coach and defensive coordinator in 2005. In thirteen years as a coach, Muschamp has never remained at one school longer than four seasons. Known for his fiery sideline demeanor, Muschamp is easily one of the most talented defensive coaches in the college game, although he has never held a head coaching position at any level. In addition to his lack of head coaching experience, it is unclear whether or not Muschamp’s irascible personality would mesh well with Tigers’ athletic director Terry Don Phillips, who has a habit of stalking the sidelines (in purple sweater vests, no less) and second-guessing his head coaches. – fitsnews.com

The Name Game: Muschamp, Johnson Gaining Traction at Clemson

“The Name Game” at Football Rumor Mill focuses on active coaching searches around the country. The latest edition centers on the Clemson Tigers…

Vanderbilt Coach Bobby Johnson is being rumored as a potential candidate for the Clemson opening, while UT Coach Phillip Fulmer is on the proverbial hot seat. – Tennessean

Roughly 10 months after he was hired as one of the highest paid assistant coaches in the country, Texas’ Will Muschamp could once again be on the move to a team with a different shade of orange. – CUTigers.com

Bowden’s departure is only the first in what could be another turbulent coaching offseason. Keep an eye on what happens with Phil Fulmer at Tennessee in the next few weeks. There are already watches going on at Syracuse and Washington. And who knows what will happen at Penn State, if the Nittany Lions roar through the season undefeated and Joe Paterno decides at the age of 81 it would be a nice way to leave center stage. And then there will be the inevitable questions about when is it time for Bobby Bowden to step aside and allow coach-in-waiting Jimbo Fisher to move into the top slot. At Clemson, the search will move forward. Names such as Vanderbilt’s Bobby Johnson, a Clemson alum and former defensive coordinator for the Tigers, Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe, and Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp have been mentioned. – Boston Globe

Scoop: With Tub in Trouble, is Butch on Horizon?

The winds of change have been set in motion in Auburn, Alabama. Sources at the school tell Football Rumor Mill that Coach Tommy Tuberville’s chances of returning in 2009 look about the same as a Republican takeover of Congress next month.

Saturday’s 22-25 loss to Arkansas may be the beginning of the end for Tub. Talk about irony… Remember “Jet Gate” in 2003? Steve Ensminger was calling the plays for Auburn’s offense and a bunch of trustees wanted to hire then Louisville Coach Bobby Petrino to replace Tuberville.

Fast forward to 2008… Tommy Tuberville fired his latest offensive coordinator earlier in the week (his fifth). Now, he has Steve Ensminger calling his plays and current Arkansas Coach Bobby Petrino likely just cost him his job.

Barring a miracle turnaround, it’s hard to see who Auburn beats the rest of the season. Following an off week, the Tigers travel to West Virginia, play at Ole Miss, return home to take on UT-Martin and end the season with Georgia and Alabama. Getting to seven wins would be a season salvaged. Auburn could conceivably finish 5-7. We’re not sure seven wins would be enough to ensure Tuberville’s return. In fact, we’re told he likely has to win at least eight.

Who would replace him? That’s an interesting question. With Petrino likely off the table, next in line would have probably been Florida State OC Jimbo Fisher. However, Fisher was named head coach in waiting for the Seminoles last year. The three names we’ve been hearing are North Carolina Coach Butch Davis, Texas DC Will Muschamp and Georgia Tech Coach Paul Johnson, whom we consider a long shot.