New Maryland head coach Randy Edsall was abruptly left with a vacancy at defensive coordinator when Don Brown unexpectedly left the Terps for the same job at Edsall’s former school Maryland. Now it appears the coach will give a big name at least a look-see to fill the position.
Bruce Feldman of ESPN is reporting that former Miami head coach Randy Shannon (warning: pay-per-view link ahead!) will interview for the job this week. Specifically, Feldman reports that Shannon is expected to interview with Edsall Tuesday and Wednesday in College Park.
Shannon was fired by the Hurricanes shortly after the end of the 2010 regular season, and his name was attached to head-coaching vacancies at Minnesota and Vanderbilt. He was also rumored to be a candidate for the coordinator position at Texas that ultimately went to Manny Diaz.
The most serious speculation since his dismissal, though, has come recently. Shannon reportedly interviewed for the coordinator job at UCLA and was thought to be the front-runner until news surfaced that the job would likely go to Rocky Seto. Under some rather bizarre circumstances, Seto is no longer under consideration, so Maryland could have some competition from UCLA for Shannon’s services.
In addition to Shannon, Kevin Lempa is also being mentioned as a candidate. The Washington Post reports that Lempa met with Edsall late last week regarding the coordinator vacancy.
Lempa spent the past four seasons on Ralph Friedgen‘s staff, but was not retained when Edsall took over the Terps. Now, apparently, he’s under consideration for what would be a promotion.