Coach Watch 2007

After a week of silence fueled speculation that he might be testing the job market, Auburn football coach Tommy Tuberville finally made an emphatic statement about his intentions Tuesday night.
In agreeing to a two-year contract extension, a $200,000-per-year pay raise and a buyout of $4 million for the final four years of the contract, Tuberville finally acted like a man who intends to stay put.
Tuberville said he neither received contact nor expressed interest in openings at Arkansas and Texas A&M, although some overzealous media reports had him accepting the Razorbacks’ head coaching job last week. His uncharacteristic silence even motivated a handful of reporters to stake out the Opelika-Auburn airport in an attempt to catch him on his return from a hunting trip to Arkansas, but Tuberville dodged the welcoming party.
Tuberville could easily have put an end to an unnecessarily volatile situation by making one statement: I'm not interested in any other jobs and plan to remain at Auburn.
Instead, he maintained silence until after LSU coach Les Miles announced he wouldn‘t be interviewing for the Michigan job. It’s worth wondering if that, rather than undying love for Auburn, prompted Tuberville to turn his attention to the contract Auburn put on the table.
His coy behavior cloak gave rivals ample material to use on the recruiting trail. Ultimately, it may have also eroded some of his support base at Auburn.
Fans and boosters don‘t like to be jerked around.
* Tuberville wasn’t the only coach who may have used Arkansas’ job opening as negotiating leverage. Clemson’s Tommy Bowden accepted a raise and contract extension from his school after the Razorbacks came calling.
Bowden’s bow-out leaves Michigan defensive coordinator Ron English and Tulsa offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn as the most prominent candidates.
Yes, that’s the same Gus Malzahn who clashed with former head coach Houston Nutt while working as Arkansas’ offensive coordinator for one season.
* Georgia Tech still doesn’t have a head coach in place, but that could change soon.
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Navy head coach Paul Johnson was in town to interview for the opening on Wednesday.
Tech officials would be wise to make an offer.
Johnson, who owns a 107-39 record in 11 years as a head coach, specializes in turnarounds. He inherited a 1-10 Navy program in 2001 and built a 10-2 team from such rubble in 2004.
Georgia Tech would offer far better raw material with which to work.
As for concerns about Johnson’s preferences for an option-based offense, look around college football.
Several prominent programs succeed with a spread-based version of the option.
They can’t all possibly be wrong.