FIU coaching search updates

Ron Turner, who previously served as the head coach of the Illinois Illini, and served as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterbacks coach in 2012, will reportedly take over for Mario Cristobal as head coach of the FIU Golden Panthers. ESPN’s Brett McMurphy reported the hiring late Thursday night.

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The search continues for the next Florida International football head coach, and the Miami Herald is reporting that Danny Hope and Chuck Amato have emerged as candidates for the position. Butch Davis was reportedly the man to replace Mario Cristobal, but a curious UNC contract dispute is reportedly the hangup.

Hope was recently fired from Purdue, where he served as head coach from 2009 to 2012. Purdue compiled a record of 22-27 during his tenure there and went to a bowl game in 2011. He also served as the head coach of Eastern Kentucky from 2003 to 2007 where they went 35-22 under his guidance.

According to a FOX Sports report, North Carolina is unwilling to pay a $1.8-million settlement the two sides agreed upon when he was fired from Davis’s previous job if he is to accept the postion at FIU. According to reports, the original structure of the settlement was to be three $590,000 annual payments between 2013 and 2015, but that money is forfeited if he accepts the FIU job, according to North Carolina.

There were reports out of Florida that Davis had accepted the job at FIU, but FIU’s athletic director, Pete Garcia, denied the claims.

Update: FIU denies the report. Bruce Feldman reports “some skepticism” concerning the original report.

Florida International finally got their man? After reportedly being rebuffed by Butch Davis earlier this month, FIU is expected to name him its new head football coach, according to a report from Patrik Nohe of the Miami Herald.

Florida International’s head coaching vacancy is attracting some big names around college football. The latest is Houston Nutt, who expressed interest in becoming the school’s next head coach, according to Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports. Nutt had also expressed interest in Southern Miss and South Florida, according to reports.

Nutt has plenty of experience on college’s biggest stage as the head coach at both Arkansas and Ole Miss. He has amassed a 135-96 record and won four bowl games, including three wins in the Cotton Bowl.

Cristobal had turned down many higher-profile jobs to stay at FIU last off-season, but a coach widely considered a rising star in the business couldn’t survive a 3-9 season in 2012.

One rumor that quickly picked up steam on Wednesday was that AD Pete Garcia was bringing in former Miami and UNC coach Butch Davis, as the two have a long-standing relationship from their time with the Hurricanes.

To the surprise of virtually everyone, Mario Cristobal was fired as the head coach at FIU today, despite being the most successful coach in the program’s short history and having turned down other high-profile jobs in the past two years. Schools don’t typically make a move this drastic unless they have a replacement lined up or at least in mind. FIU is apparently no different.

According to Pete Thamel in a report for Sports Illustrated, FIU athletic director Pete Garcia has a high profile replacement of his own in mind: former Miami Hurricanes head coach Butch Davis. Thamel writes:

Florida International has “let go” of coach Mario Cristobal, according to FootballScoop.com and confirmed by Pete Thamel. This is the most surprising termination of 2012, besides Appalachian State letting go of Jerry Moore, of course. Despite a down year in 2012, Cristobal has been one of the most-sought coaches in the country over the past couple years, with multiple power programs up north going after him last year.

He turned down the Rutgers job, in fact -- meaning he’s gone from a chance to become an eventual Big Ten coach to a fired Sun Belt coach. How in the world did that happen?