Tuesday, December 04, 2007

Bowden Set to Become Arkansas Coach?

Indications are that Arkansas has found its man, and that man appears to be Tommy Bowden.

The board of the Razorback Foundation is expected to meet Tuesday morning and approve a compensation package for Bowden, who barring a late snag, is expected to say yes, according to a report.

The compensation package being drawn up for Bowden is believed to be in the $2.5 million a year range. He reportedly has a $2.5 million buyout from Clemson.

The Springdale Morning News also reports Clemson made a counter-offer Monday night, but that a high-ranking Clemson official said he doesn't believe the offer will be enough to keep Bowden from making the jump.

Michigan defensive coordinator Ron English and — you guessed it — Tulsa offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn also interviewed in recent days.

Update: Another swing and a miss for the Razorbacks, as Bowden has now agreed to stay on at Clemson, agreeing to a contract extension.

In other coaching-related news:

UCLA: As expected, the Bruins fired Karl Dorrell. Boise State's Chris Petersen was reportedly at the top of UCLA's list, but he said, "I'm not interested in that place." Former Detroit Lion, San Francisco 49er and California Golden Bear coach Steve Mariucci, also said to be a man of interest, declined comment on the job when contacted by the L.A. Times.

Defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker, who will coach the team in the Las Vegas Bowl, might be a candidate. Walker has been contacted by Washington State about its opening. Texas Tech's Mike Leach, who was born in California, is also being mentioned, as is Tennessee Titan assistant Norm Chow.

Michigan: The Wolverines aren't used to hiring coaches and it shows. Ball State's Brady Hoke said he has spoken to Wolverine athletic director Bill Martin about the opening. Kirk Ferentz's name keeps popping up, but there is no indication from Iowa reporters that this is going to happen. Clearly regrouping after Les Miles said no.

In a related story, ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit on his inaccurate Miles-to-Michigan report: "I will never gather news and report again."

Duke: The Blue Devils appear to have Navy's Paul Johnson at the top of their list. Johnson is also getting interest from Southern Methodist and Georgia Tech.

1 comment:

chicagotiger91 said...

Tommy Bowden is staying at Clemson. He has agreed to a contract extension. This was just reported on the Clemson Rivals.com site