College Confidential

TCU co-OC Justin Fuente tapped for Memphis job, Patterson confirms

TCU co-offensive coordinator Justin Fuente will be announced as Memphis’ head coach at noon today, Gary Patterson confirmed late Wednesday.
The Memphis job opened up after Larry Porter was fired after the Tigers lost Nov. 26. Porter went 3-21 in two seasons.
Fuente, 35, who was named co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2009 after serving two season as the Frogs’ running backs coach, helped set new standards for TCU offense the last three seasons. The offense set school records for yards and points scored in 2009 and 2010 behind Fuente and co-offensive coordinator and running backs coach Jarrett Anderson.
TCU’s 2011 offense, behind first-year starting quarterback Casey Pachall, has put up similar numbers. The ’11 offense is averaging 444 yards and 41.7 points a game. Last year, the Frogs averaged 476.8 yards and 41.6 points with quarterback Andy Dalton and a slew of senior receivers.
Fuente came to TCU after six seasons at Illinois State, including the last three as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Fuente grew up in Tulsa, played quarterback at Oklahoma for two years before transferring to and graduating from Murray State.
Fuente has been rumored for other jobs in the past, including interviewing for the LSU offensive coordinator opening last year.

-- Stefan Stevenson
@FollowtheFrogs 

Clemson AD busy

The list of coaches being considered for the Clemson job grows.

AD Terry Don Phillips has met with Oklahoma defensvie coordinator and associate head coach Brent Venables and former Oakland Raiders coach Lane Kiffin. Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer told his team that their defensive coordinator Bud Foster was to talk with Phillips Friday. Vanderbilt coach Bobby Johnson and Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp are also believed to be interview targets.--Mike Jones.

Rodriguez to Michigan

West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez has accepted the head coaching job at Michigan. A news conference was scheduled at 2 p.m. CST. ESPN has a Michigan athletic department spokesman confirming the hiring.

BYU coach on UCLA search

BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall issued this statement via the school's sports information department on Thursday:

"I have not been contacted by UCLA, nor have I expressed an interest in the head coaching position at UCLA. My focus has been and will remain on preparing this team to play in our upcoming bowl game. I do not wish to comment further on items of speculation."

BYU plays UCLA in the Las Vegas Bowl on Dec. 22.

UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero asked Bruins fans on Thursday to be patient with the search. Meanhile, Terry Bowden, former Auburn coach and son of Bobby, has told media outlets he would be interested in the UCLA position.

Sumlin announced as Coogs coach

The University of Houston has announced the hiring of Oklahoma co-offensive coordinator and former Texas A&M assistant Kevin Sumlin as the 11th head football coach in UH history.

The release from UH also said:

"Sumlin is the first African-American to be hired to lead a Division I-Football Bowl Subdivision program in the state of Texas. Former North Texas head coach Matt Simon was first hired in 1993 when the UNT program was a Division I-Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) school, later moving up a division and coaching the North Texas program from 1994-97 as a member of the Division I-FBS. "

In the mid-1990s, Sumlin was an assistant on the staff of former TCU coach Jim Wacker at Minnesota.

Down to two at UH

The Houston Chronicle reported Tuesday night that a person with knowledge of the situation says that the the University of Houston's search for a head football coach has been narrowed to two candidates — former NFL and Cougars coach Jack Pardee and Notre Dame offensive coordinator Michael Haywood, who was an assistant at Texas in 2003-04.

-- Vince Langford

Wish and wish and wish again

Les speaks.

ESPNews at about 2:40 p.m. read a statement from LSU coach Les Miles in regard to a Detroit Free Press report Monday that the Michigan athletic director and president had talked to Miles last Friday, a day after Miles signed a contract extension with LSU. He said he had a conversation with Michigan last week covering a wide range of topics: "I was doing nothing more than helping them with a search for a football coach as any loyal alumnus might do. It was nothing more than that. I am not a candidate for that job."

-- Vince Langford

Miles and LSU and Michigan

According to The Ann Arbor News, Les Miles' agent, George Bass, called the cellphone of Michigan athletic director Bill Martin on Friday just to see where Miles stood in Michigan's coaching search as LSU was preparing an extension offer. And when he didn't hear back, Bass called Martin again. "The (LSU) deal was so good that we couldn't just wait," Bass was quoted as saying. "I didn't know if we were one of the candidates in the pool at that time. There was just no communication." Saturday morning, ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit reported his information that Miles was expected to go to Michigan. Miles disputed the report later Saturday and announced he was staying at LSU. Today, Martin told The Ann Arbor News he received only one phone message from Bass and that it was Thursday. Martin said he had told LSU on Wednesday he wouldn't talk to Miles, and that included his agent, until after LSU's game Saturday. Did Michigan blow its chance to get Miles? Check out the story on www.mlive.com/wolverines.

--  Vince Langford

Art Briles takes Baylor job

Art Briles, the head coach at the University of Houston the last five years, will be named the head football coach of the Baylor Bears at a 5:30 p.m. news conference, a source said Wednesday.

Briles is expected to receive a seven-year deal worth $1.8 million a year. Houston has scheduled a team meeting for 12:30 p.m. this afternoon and one has been set at Baylor for 4 p.m. today.

Briles compiled a 34-28 record in his five seasons as the head coach of the University of Houston. During that span, he guided the Cougars to four bowl games, including a trip to this year’s Texas Bowl, which will be held Dec. 28 at Reliant Stadium in Houston.

Briles would replace Guy Morriss, who was fired Nov. 18 after the Bears posted an 18-40 record — they were only 7-33 in the Big 12 — in his five seasons as the Baylor head coach.

UH was 8-4 under Briles this season and 10-4 last year when won the Conference USA Coach of the Year award and the Cougars captured the conference’s championship. Briles also coached Stephenville to state titles in 1993, ’94, ’98 and ’99.