The longer the USM search goes on....

[Policarp]

Mullins getting beat by ole miss ended near term risk for trading up. Mullins could be in trouble if MSU has a mediocre season ending with another loss to Ole Miss. Hud has his dream job gift wrapped under his tree next Christmas.

[anhil8tor]

Talk about righting the ship? How about releasing the master plan in new orleans with the weight room announcement.. hell throw in team meeting rooms with that and get UL some good pub on ESPN... that's amore.

[CajunDreDog]

That's funny. I'm hearing the next round of realignment will happen in the next two weeks before Christmas.

Our admin will be busy in NOLA again with their pants down?

[RCAJUN90]

He has some job security here. USM will bounce him as quick as they can pawn something if he doesn't win. He has already done more in two years than Bustle did in what seemed like decades.

[Parrott]

Lets think here moving from the West, to the East. Bama, LSU, TAMU,Auburn,Arkansas Ole Miss vs Mizzou, Vanderbilt, Kentucky, UGA, USC, and Florida. Much easier, and being the clear big cheese in the state. Problems though for Tennessee is fairly weak on high school talent, and it gets poached along a long narrow boarder by everyone.

Thinking Mullins is looking for better, somewhere in the Big Ten, or Big XII.

I was saying Mullen was more likely to take the Tennessee job over Colorado, which is an absolute dumpster fire.

Having lived in Tennessee, there's no doubt where the state's loyalty lies. The Vols crave for a winner, will pay very well and want somebody there who has done it before. Fulmer did a solid job of keeping in-state talent at home until the final few years of his tenure. The challenge now is to lure more of the Memphis-area talent to Knoxville and keep signing the legit SEC talent in Nashville and Chattanooga.

[CajunEXPRESS]

Agreed Josh, Tennessee should be a much better job than almost any in the USA. The problem for Tennessee and Mississippi State for that matter is they are about the 9th or tenth best jobs in the SEC currently. Make that one better, Auburn about to get hammered into hell by the NCAA. ;o)

If Mullen ops to find a more stable situation anywhere else it opens the door for Hud to get that job. If he does not get it, then it tells him he needs to find his next most desirable job. In any case at that point it offers the "Wizard of Martin Hall" cover for his failures to be all in for athletics. He cannot be blamed for losing Hud because of The Wizard's tardiness.

[Parrott]

Agreed Josh, Tennessee should be a much better job than almost any in the USA. The problem for Tennessee and Mississippi State for that matter is they are about the 9th or tenth best jobs in the SEC currently. Make that one better, Auburn about to get hammered into hell by the NCAA. ;o)

If Mullen ops to find a more stable situation anywhere else it opens the door for Hud to get that job. If he does not get it, then it tells him he needs to find his next most desirable job. In any case at that point it offers the "Wizard of Martin Hall" cover for his failures to be all in for athletics. He cannot be blamed for losing Hud because of The Wizard's tardiness.

I agree about where Tennessee is in the SEC rankings right now, but I believe the potential is there to be near the top again. The Vols have won before and will pay very well. And for Mullen, it would be a chance to get out of the SEC West and land a new four- or five-year contract. Don't see any of that being an issue for Mullen or Hudspeth, though, as Charlie Strong appears to be in line to be hired by the Vols in the next day or so.

[zephyr]

People automatically assume this conference will be much worse in terms of football with the latest defections but the truth is that we are losing only 1 team that finished in the top 5 of the final 2012 conference standings. While the conference will likely see a dropoff in its bottom dwelling teams, the top of the league will still be strong and Texas State may very well be better than NT and FAU from the beginning.

[zephyr]

I agree about where Tennessee is in the SEC rankings right now, but I believe the potential is there to be near the top again. The Vols have won before and will pay very well. And for Mullen, it would be a chance to get out of the SEC West and land a new four- or five-year contract. Don't see any of that being an issue for Mullen or Hudspeth, though, as Charlie Strong appears to be in line to be hired by the Vols in the next day or so.

When you consider all factors that would be associated with determining which programs are the best, UT would be near the top of the list, especially if they are putting a winner back on the field. Facilities, Fanbase, donors, commitment by the Administration, location and state loyalties amongst others are top notch at UT. I have no doubt that is the most desirable opening now and truly one of the best jobs in the country

[RedBug58]

Make Hud Head Football Coach/Assistant Athletic Director and pay him more. His primary job as Assistant Athletic Director would be to stay on top of the conference situation, be the spoksman for UL in conference situations, and work to put us in a good conference meeting his standards. Unleash the Hud!

[moorecajun]

People automatically assume this conference will be much worse in terms of football with the latest defections but the truth is that we are losing only 1 team that finished in the top 5 of the final 2012 conference standings. While the conference will likely see a dropoff in its bottom dwelling teams, the top of the league will still be strong and Texas State may very well be better than NT and FAU from the beginning.

I agree with you totally; we have a good chance of being even stronger against cusa next year than this but this "perception" thing is killing people.

When you realize there is nothing you can do to change someone's perception except by winning on the field, that is what you need to do. The Bowl comparisons this year that will be posted on ESPN during games showing Wins vs Losses for the conferences will be a good start AND we should get positive pub from ESPN on that, especially compared to cusa (Tulsa et al).

Beat ECU is the start!

GEAUX CAJUNS!

[moorecajun]

Make Hud Head Football Coach/Assistant Athletic Director and pay him more. His primary job as Assistant Athletic Director would be to stay on top of the conference situation, be the spoksman for UL in conference situations, and work to put us in a good conference meeting his standards. Unleash the Hud!

You may be joking BUT I see A LOT OF POSITIVE OUT OF THIS. One, it affords us to pay him more. Two, it gives him a more direct way to improve our athletic program. Three, who, out of everybody we have EVER known at this university, has a better personality to get people invoived in our program?

I like the idea ... I like it a lot.

I know it hurt Nelson Stokley but we are talking Assistant AD here.