USF narrows its list of coaching candidates to two or three
By Jeff Faraudo, STAFF WRITER
SAN FRANCISCO -- USF may be down to two finalists for its vacant basketball coaching job, although former Miami coach Perry Clark could make that number three.
Clark, 52, told the Miami Herald that USF athletic director Bill Hogan contacted him about the job, and he is deciding whether he wants to coach next season.
Hogan, who has spent six weeks looking for a coach after firing Phil Mathews on March 8, indicated Monday the search is down to a "final two." He declined comment on whether Clark could complicate that scenario.
Asked about the timetable, Hogan said, "It could be soon ... but don't hold me to that."
Arizona assistant coach Rodney Tention, a 1988 USF graduate and a candidate for the job from the beginning, appears still to be in the running.
"I honestly don't know anything," said Tention, who had not talked with anyone from USF as of Monday afternoon. Asked if that suggests he remains in the picture, Tention said, "I guess so."
Clark was fired by Miami last month after the Hurricanes lost 11 of their final 12 games to finish 14-16, their second straight losing season. In 2002, Clark directed Miami to a school-record 24 victories, and he posted an 11-year record of 185-145 at Tulane.
The final active candidate appears to be Jessie Evans, head coach at Louisiana-Lafayette, who visited the hilltop campus last Wednesday and Thursday.
Evans, a former Arizona assistant, declined to offer any insights on the situation when contacted Monday by the Lafayette Daily Advertiser. "Absolutely, I can't comment on that," he said.
Evans has directed the Ragin' Cajuns to three straight 20-victory seasons, a berth in this year's NCAA Tournament and a seven-year record of 132-81. But his most recent three-year contract has expired and the university's president has indicated he is not happy that seven players have faced academic suspensions since the start of the 2002-03 season.
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