FAMU 0-2 in head football coaching search

Photo: John Eason, University of Georgia Associate Head Coach Wide Receivers, will remain with Bulldogs.

by beepbeep

Florida A&M University's William "Bill" Hayes era is getting off to a shaky start in the selection of a new Rattlers head football coach to replace Rubin Carter.

Carter was fired by FAMU on November 20, and placed on administrative leave until April 22, 2008. His assistant coaches are on paid administrative leave until February 12, 2008.

Former athletic director Nelson Townsend resigned November 20, and will be on administrative leave with pay until February 12, 2008, his last day of employment.

The University of Wyoming hired Bob Cole as offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach for the Cowboys football team. Cole, formerly the Rattlers offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach under Carter, was selected "sole source" by head coach Joe Glenn at the Football Bowl Championship Subdivision (Division 1A) Western Athletic Conference school. Cole's salary as the offensive coordinator of the Cowboys will be $123,480 per year for two years.

Rubin Carter was a finalist last week for the head coaching position at Savannah State University. Carter was not selected by the Tigers administration to lead the woeful 1-AA Independent football program that has not had a winning season since 1998. Savannah State has had 9 head football coaches in the past 13 years. Theo Lemon was fired after two seasons and a 3-18 record.

First year Grambling State University head football coach Rod Broadway turned down an offer by Florida A&M to lead the Rattlers program on December 18, when he decided to accept a matching offer from the Tigers administration and remain in his present position. Prior to the new deal with Grambling State, Broadway's base salary was $156,000, plus bonuses of $13,000 for winning the SWAC West division title ($3,000) and playing two 1-A schools--Pittsburgh and Louisiana Monroe ($10,000) for a $169,000 salary. He also gets additional bonuses based on the net revenue Grambling receives from those Football Bowl Subdivision contests.

Yesterday, Georgia associate head coach John Eason admits being flattered by the attention from his alma mater, Florida A&M. But in the end, Eason decided that he wanted to remain a Bulldog, rather than accept the opportunity of becoming the Rattlers' head football coach.

"I really wanted to do it," said Eason, 62, who also serves as Georgia's receivers coach. "It was something that I wanted to do and I just felt like I could not. I just felt like I had to stay here. I was looking at what I've got coming back and what I've got coming in and it's a treat."

"It was just a situation where it was just not meant to be."

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So, the big question--who's next on the Rattlers short list of candidates? May be a full and open coaching search with the submission of applications/resumes' by interested applicants may be the best approach at this time. This is not an easy task fans, so let us all be patient with the process.

If Florida A&M had a new coaching staff in place with assistant coaches, the staff would not be able to go see kids again until Jan. 14, 2008, when the dead period ends, and can recruit all the way to February 3, 2008. National signing day, the first day that a high school athlete can sign a binding letter of intent to play college football is February 6, 2008. These are the real time-lines that the administration is working with in hiring a new coaching staff.