Monday was not a good day to be a college football coach (unless you're Mike Sherman).
If the reports are true _ and schools don't call news conferences to announce contract extensions _ Arkansas will send Houston Nutt to the unemployment line Monday around dinner time. Georgia Tech fired Chan Gailey, Duke fired Ted Roof, Jeff Bower retired after 17 years at Southern Miss and Northern Illinois' Joe Novak announced his retirement.
Texas A&M had the quickest turnaround on the coaching carousel _ Dennis Franchione, gone on Friday; Mike Sherman, hired on Monday.
Arkansas scheduled a news conference for 6:30 p.m. Monday. If Nutt is dismissed, he could end his unemployed status quickly and take the Baylor job ... if it's offered. If indeed Nutt is out in Fayetteville, there will be 11 schools looking for coaches: Baylor, Nebraska, Michigan, SMU, Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, Duke, Southern Miss, Northern Illinois and Colorado State.
First-year North Carolina coach Butch Davis last week had his contract extended by a year and his yearly compensation increased by nearly $300,000. That move was made to counter a possible offer from Arkansas. It's still possible that Davis, an Arkansas grad, would listen to what the Boss Hogs have to say if they try to woo him.
_ Wendell Barnhouse
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