Monday night, as rumors were flying that Miami OC James Coley was considering the Kentucky OC gig, I was on my couch watching MNF and monitoring my Twitter feed. All of a sudden the phone rang. My caller ID told me that the person on the other end of the phone was someone I needed to speak to. Because they are not authorized to speak on the matter, I can’t reveal who the call was from. I can, however, tell you that this person is a member of the University of Miami’s leadership structure. I’ve known this person for a long time, and I know this person to be very passionate about the University in general and especially athletics.
So, when I get a chance to talk to this person, which isn’t as often as I’d like, I take it very seriously.
Here are some random notes from that conversation:
-Any decision about the head football coach at Miami will not be made by athletic director Blake James or President Donna E. Shalala. The decision will come straight from the Board of Trustees, with much of the say coming from the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Stuart Miller. Miller, a UM Law School alum, and CEO of Lennar Corporation, is said to be very “authoritative and opinionated.” He’s also very passionate about UM Athletics. Miller’s father, Leonard, who passed away in 2002, was the Chairman of the Board of Trustees from 1995-1999. The elder Miller was on the BOT from 1983 until the time he passed away. Oh, and the medical school is named after him. The Miller family holds considerable influence at The U to say the least.
-Several members of the BOT have voiced their frustration with the direction of the football program. Don’t think they are deaf to the situation or you, the fans’ frustration.
-Despite reports to the contrary, there is enough money in UM’s endowment to both buy out Golden and hire a new coach and staff with competitive compensation. The question is, WHETHER THE POWERS THAT BE want to spend the money. In the past the old guard has been, for a lack of a better word, cheap.
– Several members of the leadership group were put off by Al’s absence last December and his pursuit of the PSU gig. Many people that were once big supporters became disenfranchised.
– At the very least there will be a heavy push for several staff changes, especially on the defensive side of the football.
– The belief that leadership does not want to win in football is not true. Especially as it relates to more recent members of the BOT.
-From the conversation I gathered that even though Blake James has given Al the vote of confidence, if the powers-that-be above Blake want a change, there will be one.
– I was told a decision either way would be made maybe as early as this week, but at the most over the next few weeks. Right now the people that need to do the fact gathering etc were doing that.
