The Gators are hunting for a new head coach after firing Will Muschamp on Sunday.
After Muschamp struggled to make the transition from the assistant coaching ranks to a head coaching job, many expect UF athletic director Jeremy Foley to target someone with head coaching experience.
Take a closer look at top potential candidates for the high-profile Florida job:
--Rich Rodriguez: Rodriguez has resurrected his career at Arizona, highlighted by two wins over Oregon. But he has a lot to explain from his three seasons at Michigan (2008-10), where his teams were 15-22. Rodriguez, 51, arrived to Ann Arbor after fielding three straight top-10 teams at West Virginia.
--Mike Shanahan: Shanahan is a former Gators offensive coordinator and familiar with the program. But at age 62, Shanahan would have to be willing to hit the recruiting trail for the first time since 1983, when he left Gainesville for a long career in the NFL.
--Dan Mullen: Until Saturday's loss at Alabama, Mullen's Mississippi State Bulldogs were unbeaten and ranked No. 1. The former Gators offensive coordinator would be a step away from the defensive-minded Muschamp. But it is hard to ignore Mississippi State was just 13-19 in SEC play the past four seasons under Mullen, 42.
--Kevin Sumlin: If Foley could go back in time, he might have hired another coach out of the state of Texas -- Sumlin. Sumlin left Houston a year later for Texas A&M. Sumlin, who earns $5 million annually, would carry a hefty price tag. The 50-year-old also would leave behind a program amid $450 million in facility and stadium upgrades and with a recruiting base in Texas as good as any.
--Huge Freeze: The offensive-minded Freeze has turned Ole Miss into an upper-echelon team in just three seasons. He signed the nation's No. 4 recruiting class in 2013, and No. 14 in 2014. Freeze surely could find some players in the state of Florida that would love to play in his spread offense. At age 45, he is a rising star, but also a native of Oxford, Miss., who may hedge before leaving his home state.
--Bob Stoops: If the third time is a charm, then Stoops, 54, might be Gainesville bound. Foley reached out to Stoops in 2002 and 2004, but the former Gators defensive coordinator stayed in Oklahoma. These days in Norman, though, Stoops' flower has faded. Besides last season's Sugar Bowl upset of Alabama, the Sooners have not won a lot of big game in recent seasons.
--Mike Gundy: Gundy has fielded explosive offenses and won 82 games in 10 seasons at Oklahoma State. It would be hard to imagine he cannot get better players to come to Gainesville than Stillwater. Gundy, 47, was mentioned in connection with the Tennessee job two years ago. These days, Gundy and Cowboys athletic director Mike Holder are not on the best of terms.
--Todd Graham: Graham had Arizona State in playoff contention until Saturday's shocking loss at Oregon State. He has shown he can field a prolific offense during every stop of his peripatetic career. The 49-year-old also showed he wants to climb the coaching ranks, leaving jobs at and Pittsburgh after one season apiece.
--Doc Holliday: Holliday's Marshall Thundering Herd join FSU as the nation's remaining undefeated teams. Holliday was a UF assistant head coach and safeties coach (2005-07) under Urban Meyer. Few can recruit South Florida like Holliday, but would a 57-year-old coach from a Conference USA school fit the profile Foley seeks?
--Chip Kelly: Kelly would be a home-run hire, but is a major long shot. Using a high-octane offense, the 50-year-old built Oregon into a national power and now has the Philadelphia Eagles atop the NFC East. If Kelly wants to return to college, the Gators would be a nice landing spot. But he is in the second year of a five-year deal that pays him $6.5 million annually.
--Dabo Swinney: Clemson's head coach is quite familiar with the SEC. He is a Birmingham native who played and coached at Alabama. Swinney, 44, has proven he is a terrific recruiter, and Clemson -- currently 7-3 -- has won 10 games during each of the past three seasons.
--Gary Patterson: Patterson's TCU Horned Frogs are in the hunt for a playoff spot and would be unbeaten if not for a late-game meltdown against Baylor. Patterson is a long-time defensive coach, but TCU scored 82 points against Texas Tech a week after holding Oklahoma State to nine points. The 54-year-old is a front-runner for national coach of the year.
Source: http://www.syracuse.com/sports/index.ssf/2014/11/who_will_replace_will_muschamp_at_florida_a_list_of_candidates.html
