Some at Michigan fear Les Miles rejection, per report
Jim Harbaugh and Butch Jones are reportedly not interested in the position, putting the Wolverines in a bind.
Michigan head coach Brady Hoke has not been fired yet, but it’s pretty much a foregone conclusion he’ll be gone after the Wolverines’ 5-7 record this season. Michigan had hoped to find his replacement by now, but the program is struggling to find an interested and suitable candidate, FootballScoop is reporting.
The report says the school has reached out to San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh and Tennessee head coach Butch Jones, both of whom are no longer considered candidates. [MGoBlog reports otherwise on Harbaugh.]
They also claim there is “disagreement” at Michigan about Les Miles, with some believing he’s a viable candidate and others fearing that “Les would publicly acknowledge their interest but ultimately choose to remain at LSU, giving the Michigan search a very public black eye.” Michigan has allegedly flirted with Miles, a Michigan alum, for years, ultimately never offering him the position in its previous two coaching searches. John U. Bacon’s book Three and Out recounted a telling exchange between former coach Rich Rodriguez and former athletic director Dave Brandon.
The one coach who everyone agrees did not receive an offer from Michigan, again, was Les Miles. He had been handled shabbily during the 2007 search, and it appears he wasn’t treated much better in 2010, either. All overtures to him were strictly a show designed to appease his supporters. When Rodriguez asked Brandon in December of 2010 if he already had someone lined up, Brandon denied it but said he would hire Les Miles “over my dead body.” The rest was theater.
Hoke has posted a career 31-20 record at Michigan, with decreasing win totals in each season of his tenure. He won 12 games with Ball State in 2008 and nine games with San Diego State in 2010.
