Wisconsin tabs ex-Cal coach to fill coaching vacancy

AP

A pissed-off Gary Andersen lost a member of his Wisconsin staff a couple of days ago, but the first-year Badgers head coach has moved to expeditiously fill the vacancy.

UW announced Tuesday that Jeff Genyk has been hired as both tight ends coach and special teams coordinator. Genyk will replace Jay Boulware, who was hired by Andersen in January but left for Oklahoma a month or so later.

“We’re very excited to have Jeff, his wife, Lisa, and their two children, Jake and McKenna, become a part of the Badger family,” Andersen said. “He’s been a tight ends coach and special teams coordinator at the BCS level, as well as having head coach experience, so that made him a very attractive candidate. I’m extremely pleased we were able to get a tremendous coach like Jeff, especially given the timing of this transition.”

Genyk spent the past three seasons as an assistant at Cal. Genyk was also just hired recently as an assistant at Nevada.

AP

Thanks to stunning seasons built on entirely different circumstances and history, Duke’s David Cutcliffe and Auburn’s Gus Malzahn are expected to go mano a mano for most if not all postseason coaching honors.  Thanks to an announcement today, it’s now Cutcliffe 1, Malzahn 1 on the 2013 national awards circuit.

Malzahn, it was revealed, has been named as the Home Depot Coach of the Year.  In his first season as the Tigers’ head coach, Malzahn has led AU to a 12-1 record, an SEC championship and a spot opposite top-ranked Florida State in the BCS title game.  He’s just the second first-year coach to lead his team to a BCS title game, joining Miami’s Larry Coker in 2001.

It was a stunning turnaround on The Plains, with Malzahn’s accomplishments coming just a year after Gene Chizik was fired following a season in which the Tigers went 3-9 overall and 0-8 in the SEC.  Chizik, oddly enough, won the same award following the 2010 season.

Last year’s winner was Notre Dame’s Brian Kelly.

Late last week, Cutcliffe was named the Walter Camp Coach of the Year to claim the first major national coaching honor.  Cutcliffe and Malzahn are also finalists for the Eddie Robinson and Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year awards.

AP

Poor Arkansas State.  If all of the reports that are flooding in are accurate, the Sun Belt program will be looking for its fourth head the past four years.

Multiple media outlets are reporting Wednesday morning that Bryan Harsin is set to leave the Red Wolves and take over as the head coach at Boise State.  Harsin would, of course, replace Chris Petersen, who left the Broncos earlier this week for Washington.

An ASU official stated that a press release regarding Harsin and his future at the school would be released later today.  Harsin reportedly has a $1.75 million buyout built into his ASU deal, which will be paid by Boise.

The move would serve as a homecoming for Harsin, who was a Broncos assistant from 2001-10 and played his college football at the school prior to that.  From 2006-10, he served as Petersen’s offensive coordinator.

Former BSU head coach Dirk Koetter and former BSU defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox were also considered top targets in the search.

Harsin had replaced Gus Malzahn at Arkansas State when the latter left after one season for the Auburn job.  Malzahn, in turn, had replaced Hugh Freeze, who left Jonesboro after one season for Ole Miss.  Add in Steve Roberts, who “resigned” following the 2010 season, and fifth-year Red Wolves seniors in 2014 will have had five different head coaches during their time with the program.

UPDATED 12:06 p.m. ET: Both Arkansas State and Boise State have confirmed that Bryan Harsin has been named as the Broncos new head coach.

AP

(Writer’s note: Pardon us while we step away from the Brown/Saban saga for a brief moment.  We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience and/or angst this may cause now or in the future.)

While the coaching carousel is spinning in high gear, the coaching firing line is open and active as well, with Hawaii the latest to make a change on the sideline following the conclusion of the 2013 regular season.

Norm Chow confirmed Tuesday that defensive coordinator Thom Kaumeyer and linebackers coach Tony Tuioti “will not return to the coaching staff next season.”  In announcing the twin dismissals, Chow was refreshingly honest in acknowledging the cruelty of the coaching game.

“This is a cruel and difficult profession,” Chow said. “Thom and Tony are friends of mine and good coaches and good men who worked extremely hard these last two years. I thank them and wish them well as we all move forward.”

With the dismissal of Kaumeyer, who just completed his second with the Rainbow Warriors, Chow is now in need of two coordinators.  In early August, Chow announced that offensive coordinator Aaron Price had been fired just five months after he was hired.

AP

The story that shows no signs of going away seemingly adds another layer or two every hour on the hour.

Intertwined with the likely departure of Mack Brown from Texas at some point before the end of the week, speculation has once again centered on Nick Saban taking over as the Longhorns head coach.  A respected TCU beat writer, Stefan Stevenson, went so far as to state very plainly that the Alabama coach would be the next UT head coach, although he did soften that stance in a subsequent tweet by stating, “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

There are also reports that, as expected, Alabama is working on a new deal for Saban, but even that is causing some frayed nerves in the Yellowhammer State.

Posted to ESPN.com very early Wednesday morning, radio personality Paul Finebaum wrote that “Saban has had a contract extension on his desk since Friday.”  The issue is that, nearly a week later, the new deal, which would bump the pay of what’s already the nation’s highest-paid head coach into the $7 million-a-year range, is still unsigned.

“[T]he longer it goes unsigned, the more uncomfortable Alabama officials grow. … Alabama officials are getting nervous about the lack of response,” Finebaum wrote.

Saban and his wife have consistently shot down reports over the past couple of months connecting the four-time BCS title-winning coach to a potential opening in Austin.  Thanks to the way his departure from the Miami Dolphins played out, his words have thus far rang hollow — and will continue to do so even if he comes out again and states he’s staying in Tuscaloosa.

For what it’s worth, ESPN‘s Kirk Herbstreit was very emphatic when asked about the Saban-to-Texas rumors, saying the Longhorns should “immediately scratch” him off their coaching to-do list and look elsewhere.

“There’s no chance. No chance of that happening,” Herbstriet told the Dallas Morning News. “Nick Saban will work TV sitting next to us on our set before he’ll be the head coach at Texas … He’ll be at Alabama for another five years, and then he’ll be working TV after that … I know Nick Saban better than anybody. It’s not going to happen.”

I tend to agree.  This appears to be nothing more than Saban’s agent leveraging UT’s obvious interest in his client into a sweeter deal from UA, as if that’s actually necessary.

But, then again, the longer the smoke lingers, the more whatever fire is burning below will be stoked by the always-churning rumor mill machine.

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In case you haven’t had your fill of posts about Mack Brown’s coaching future today, here’s another.

ESPN.com reported on Tuesday night that Brown is expected to resign his job as Texas head coach by the end of the week.

From ESPN’s source:

“I know Mack, he’s friend, this is his decision, but he wants to tell his players and staff and not read it on the Internet,” the source told ESPN. “That’s why he reacted strongly to the [Orangebloods.com] report.

“I’d be real surprised if it hasn’t happened by Friday night with the [Texas] football banquet. I think it will be taken care of. It wouldn’t drag on much longer.”

The process has apparently been slowed down by the involvement of Brown’s agent,  Joe Jamail, in a trial. But ESPN’s source seems adamant that Brown will definitely be gone soon.

“By the end of the week, that will be the outcome,” the source told ESPN. “That will happen. It’s a shame after 16 years he’s not able to do it on his own with dignity and grace.”

Another source told ESPN’s Joe Schad the same thing: Brown is about to resign.

At this point, there seems to be too much smoke for there not to be fire with regards to Brown’s future. (Not to mention all the noise around his potential successor.)

AP

A reporter for the Fort Worth Telegram tweeted on Tuesday night that, according to a source close to the University of Texas executive council of regents, Nick Saban will indeed make the jump to Austin to replace Mack Brown as the Longhorns head coach.

Here’s the tweet:

Source close to Texas executive council of regents says Nick Saban will be next Longhorns coach.—
Stefan Stevenson (@FollowtheFrogs) December 11, 2013

Now, before Alabama fans make the move to Defcon 1, keep in mind that this report could merely reflect the confidence that the council of regents has in its ability to woo a coach with a big pot of money. It could also be another trial balloon to see how Saban reacts.

Or, it could be true.

It certainly doesn’t jibe with this tidbit, though Gil Brandt may not be the most reliable source for this kind of news, either:

Just told by source Nick Saban in contract negotiations w #Alabama for extension in $7M/year range.—
Gil Brandt (@Gil_Brandt) December 10, 2013

Our guess: Something is going on. Brown is probably leaving Texas in the next couple days and the Longhorns are going to try to move heaven and earth to get Saban. But it’s probably far from a done deal at this point.

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By now, the cat’s pretty much out of the bag: Jameis Winston is going to win the Heisman Trophy this coming Saturday.

For those who like to follow the ins and outs of the Heisman, though, the question now is: What will the margin look like?  Will the Florida State freshman take home the trophy in a landslide of epic proportions or will the race be a little closer, reflecting the fact that there are six finalists in New York for the ceremony?

Let’s first throw out the idea that this race is going to be close. It won’t. The six finalists merely reflect the lack of a consensus challenger to Winston. The way the Heisman Trust decides who is named a finalist is based on the distribution of the vote totals. They always start with a minimum of three finalists. If there is not a significant drop off from the point total of the third-place finisher to that of the fourth-place finisher, then a fourth finalist is added. The same rule is applied to the gap between fourth and fifth. If they are in the same ballpark, then a fifth finalist is named. This year, there was not much of a gap between the fifth and sixth-place finishers, so we have six.

But to figure out the extent of Winston’s winning margin, one first needs to have an idea of what some past Heisman votes looked like. Here are the biggest landslides in Heisman history:

Smith’s total might be the most relevant in this discussion since the number of voters in 2006 (924) is about the same as it is now (928), whereas in Simpson’s day there were 1,200. Smith also holds the record for highest percentage of first-place votes claimed as his 801 first-place votes were 86 percent of the total first-place votes received. Simpson’s 855 first-place votes remains the overall record, but it was from a larger pool of voters.

So can Winston approach Smith’s level of support? Or will his result look more like Cam Newton’s, whose 729 first-place votes in 2010 is fourth all-time in Heisman history ? Voters that year either voted Newton first, or left him off the ballot altogether — he was missing from 119 ballots — which is why his margin of victory is only 11th-best in Heisman history. Or perhaps Winston’s coming landslide will be impressive, but not among the top 10.

A peek at the Heisman regions might provide a clue.

There are six Heisman voting regions: The Far West, the Mid-West, the Southwest, the South, the Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast. There are 145 media members in each region (with 57 former Heisman winners scattered nationally). It’s a safe assumption that Winston will win every one of these regions. But what kind of support will the other finalists get?

It makes sense that Andre Williams will finish second in the Northeast. Johnny Manziel will do well in the Southwest and South. Much of AJ McCarron’s support will come in the South, as will Tre Mason’s. Jordan Lynch should fare well in the Mid-West.

It stands to reason that the fewest first-place votes for Winston will come in the South, since there are three other candidates vying for votes who either come from or play in that region. If McCarron, Manziel and Mason combine to take away just 40 of the 145 votes in that region — a seemingly valid proposition — that automatically reduces Winston’s potential first place vote total to 887.

For Winston’s first-place vote total to drop to Newtonian range, then, he would have to lose a combined 150 or so first-place votes in the remaining five regions. Can the other five finalists average 30 first-place votes per region in the those regions, comprising 725 ballots? That’s merely an average of six first-place votes per region for each player.

I think they  will do so, especially when you consider that there remains a handful of voters who will leave Winston off their ballots due to the accusations that were made against him. When you also keep in mind that — based on recent history — around 900 ballots out of the 928 will be returned, it makes Winston’s chances of scoring an epic landslide less likely.

Will the vote be a runaway for Winston? Yes. But based on these deductions, it’s probably not going to be among the top 10 landslides in Heisman history.

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So maybe it’s Alex Rodriguez’s fault that Alabama lost to Auburn.

Turns out Crimson Tide quarterback A.J. McCarron had a phone conversation with the controversial New York Yankee prior to the Iron Bowl, the ‘Bama quarterback told media on Tuesday.

The two talked for 10-15 minutes about what it takes to be a successful athlete and Rodriguez revealed that Yankees manager Joe Girardi showed his team video of former Tide center Barrett Jones shoving McCarron in the BCS National Championship win over Notre Dame.

“(He told them) that’s the passion they need within their club again and stuff like that,” McCarron said. “It’s just pretty crazy that they’ve watched me before and are fans of me.”

McCarron, a lifelong Yankees fan, was clearly elated about the call. He later told the media he was grateful for the position he’s in as the Alabama quarterback.

“It’s almost like living in a dream in a way because I’ve met guys that I’ve watched and watched coach for so many years,” he said. “Now I’m talking to them on the phone and meeting them in person. It’s just pretty surreal.”

Rodriguez isn’t the first Yankee to kibbutz with the Alabama program. Girardi has done some hanging around and Derek Jeter attended the Tide’s game with LSU in November.

But maybe some of that patented Rodriguez reverse-magic rubbed off on McCarron a little too much. I bet the Tide could’ve used a bit more Jeter and a lot less A-Rod before the biggest game of the season.

Just sayin’.

AP

Mississippi head coach Hugh Freeze got his just reward for leading his team to a 7-5 record and its second-straight bowl: A contract extension and a nearly 50 percent raise.

According to the school, Freeze’s contract has been extended by one year to the maximum four years and his base salary will rise to $3 million (from $2 million) and increase by $150,000 each year. Incentives for Freeze’s new contract will be based on conference championships, postseason accomplishments and academic performance. In addition, the salary pool for the Ole Miss football staff was increased by 12 percent with $400,000 of new money.

“In just two short years, Coach Freeze and his staff have placed Ole Miss among college football’s top rising programs,” athletic director Ross Bjork said. “Their hard work and devotion in all facets of the program have resulted in postseason berths, elite recruiting success, personal development of our student-athletes and a renewed energy throughout Rebel Nation.”

It’s probably a smart investment by Ole Miss. After all, Freeze took over a 2-10 team and brought it back to bowl eligibility. He then signed one of the nation’s top recruiting class last spring and has another top 15 class in the works. The future is bright in Oxford and the only thing that can really derail it is more instability at head coach.

Since it looks like Freeze won’t be going anywhere soon, he might actually get a chance to see just how good those recruiting classes turn out to be.

AP

The denial train continues to chug out of Austin on Tuesday regarding football coach Mack Brown’s future.

First it was the university that released a statement denying he was stepping down, then Brown himself denied it.

Now, it’s Texas athletic director Steve Patterson’s turn.

“We continue to discuss the future of Texas Football. Mack Brown has not resigned. And no decisions have been made,” Patterson said in a statement released to media.

It doesn’t exactly sound like a ringing endorsement of Brown staying on as coach, does it? Sounds to me like decisions are about to be made.

If Texas does make a move, it could happen in the next 48 hours and then the wheels will be in motion to find a replacement for the 16-year head coach. If the Longhorns can’t lure Nick Saban out of Tuscaloosa, who’s next on the list?

Whoever it is will likely be a very, very rich man when this is over.

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The family of the woman who accused Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston of rape will hold a press conference this coming Friday (Dec. 13) to address the report on the investigation by State Attorney Willie Meggs, the accuser’s attorney said on Tuesday.

Why is Friday significant? It just so happens to be the day before the 2013 Heisman ceremony, when Winston will be awarded the coveted trophy in New York City.

This assures that the decision by Meggs and the issues swirling around it are bound to be brought up to Winston by media covering this weekend’s ceremony. It’s even possible that the accuser’s press conference will happen at the same time as the traditional pre-Heisman-ceremony press conference held on Friday with all the finalists.

Whatever the case, the accuser’s family seems intent on keeping this issue alive for now. Time will tell how this will affect the long-term perception of Winston…and the accuser.

Coming off a three-win season that saw it go winless in the SEC and fire its head coach, Auburn was an afterthought entering the 2013 season when it came to the conference race let alone the chase for a BCS title.

12 wins and an SEC championship later, the Tigers will face top-ranked Florida State for the right to claim what will be the final BCS championship trophy early next month — and there are a couple of individuals out there who couldn’t be happier.

Sportsbook.com revealed Monday that, prior to the start of the season, two individuals placed $100 wagers on Auburn to win the 2013 BCS title prior to the start of the season.  As the Tigers carried 1,000/1 odds to win the championship at the time the bets were placed, those two individuals stand to pull in a cool $100,000 if Auburn can get past Florida State Jan. 6 in Pasadena.

Prior to the SEC championship game win over Missouri that propelled Auburn into its matchup with the Seminoles, Bloomberg News reported that, per the Las Vegas Hotel Superbook, at least 14 people had laid various amounts of money on the Tigers at 1,000/1.

Sportsbook.com has the Seminoles listed as a 7.5-point favorite over the Tigers as of Tuesday morning.

(Tip O’ the Cap: Cleveland Plain Dealer)

AP

They may not have him for long, but, for now, Michigan State is home to the top assistant coach in the country.

At a ceremony held this afternoon in Little Rock, Ark., it was announced that Spartans defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi has been named the 2013 winner of the prestigious Broyles Award.  Narduzzi was one of five finalists for the award announced earlier this month, along with Auburn offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Rhett Lashlee, Baylor offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery, Florida State defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt and Duke offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Kurt Roper.

“Pat pays great attention to detail, and he’s an outstanding teacher,” Narduzzi’s boss, head coach Mark Dantonio, said in a statement. “His relationships with his players also is a strength. In addition, he’s an outstanding recruiter. Pat has been a loyal staff member for 10 years, including the last seven years at MSU. As our assistant head coach, he’s asked to manage a lot of duties.

“Pat has been the architect of a top 10 defense for the last three years. There’s no question that his defense has been the cornerstone for this record-setting 12-win season.”

Narduzzi was in charge of a defense that finished the regular season fourth in the country in scoring defense and first in total defense, helping the Spartans to earn their first trip to the Rose Bowl since 1987.  How long he remains in East Lansing remains to be seen.

After MSU’s win over Ohio State in the Big Ten championship game, Narduzzi interviewed for the head-coaching vacancy at UConn.  It’s believed Narduzzi is the leading candidate to land that job, a position that should be filled at some point this week.

AP

And the denials have begun to flow out of Austin.

A report that a decision on Mack Brown‘s future would be decided in the next 48 hours was quickly trumped by a separate report that Brown had decided to step down as the head football coach at Texas.

The university, through a school official, has quickly denied the report.  Citing a Texas source, Bruce Feldman of CBSSports.com tweeted that Brown “hasn’t had any meeting & has not told anyone he’s stepping down.”

Now, the coach himself, who is in Florida on a recruiting trip, has weighed in.

“I’m in Florida recruiting. If I had decided to step down I sure wouldn’t be killing myself down here,” Brown told 247Sports.com. “I have not decided to step down.”

Is it possible that the decision has already been made for Brown and he doesn’t know it yet?  Certainly anything is possible, especially when it comes to the unique dynamic that is UT athletics and the myriad people who pull the strings in the state.

How unique?  ESPN.com‘s Joe Schad wrote that “[t]he University of Texas Board of Regents has a critical meeting Thursday at which the future of President Bill Powers is to be discussed, which could affect the fate of Longhorns coach Mack Brown.”

As we wrote earlier, and to put these denials into perspective, Orangeblood.com‘s Chip Brown, who is reporting that Brown has decided to retire, reported back in mid-September that DeLoss Dodds would be stepping down as UT’s athletic director; the school and Dodds vehemently denied the report almost immediately.  Two weeks later, Dodds announced he would be stepping down as UT’s athletic director.

In other words, take any denials coming from in and around the university without size grain of salt you deem necessary.

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Those two days just flew by, didn’t they?

Shortly after a report surfaced that a decision on Mack Brown‘s future at Texas would come in the next 48 hours, it appears the decision has already been made.  Citing two high-level sources, Orangebloods.com‘s Chip Brown is reporting that Brown has decided to step down as the Longhorns’ head coach after 16 seasons.  An official announcement from Brown and the school is expected before the end of the week.

One source intimated to the Rivals.com website that it was Brown’s love of the football program he was largely responsible for rebuilding that led to his decision.

“Mack Brown loves Texas and wants what’s in the best interest of Texas and what’s in the best interest of Mack Brown,” the source told the site. “I don’t think it’s been an easy decision. But he doesn’t want negativity around the program he helped unify.”

If the report is accurate — and Chip Brown is one of the best in the business when it comes to UT football — it will bring to an a decade-and-a-half run for Brown in Austin… and will also cause a ripple effect to roll through the college football landscape as top-tier coaches trip over themselves to fill the coaching void with the Longhorns.

There’s little doubt UT would make yet another run at Alabama’s Nick Saban.  Outside of Saban — and/or his wife — making a surprise move out of Tuscaloosa, anyone from Jimbo Fisher to Art Briles to Kevin Sumlin to David Shaw to Jon Gruden (sorry, federal law dictates Chucky’s name be mentioned) will likely be connected to the opening in some shape or fashion.

Given the obscene financial wherewithal the UT athletic department possesses and the prestige the job holds, there should be no shortage of candidates champing at the bit to take over the reins from Brown.

UPDATED 3:03 p.m. ET: The university has denied the report that Mack Brown has decided to take his leave as the Longhorns’ head coach.

To put this denial into perspective, however, Chip Brown reported back in mid-September that DeLoss Dodds would be stepping down as UT’s athletic director; the school and Dodds vehemently denied the report.  Two weeks later, Dodds announced he would be stepping down as UT’s athletic director.