Big East Football: Panthers Left Without a Coach Again
Another off-season and another coaching search is underway for the Pittsburgh Panthers.
Former head coach Todd Graham has jumped ship and bolted for the Arizona St. job. Graham informed his team via a text message on his way to Tempe.
Once again, Pittsburgh will spend the off-season looking for a head coach. Last year that search took longer than expected as the Panthers hired former Miami (OH) head coach Mike Haywood. Haywood was fired after a domestic violence charge just days later.
Graham was the next choice for Pittsburgh and after a 6-6 season, he bolted for a warmer climate.
The Panthers will be on their fourth coach in just over a year once they hire a replacement.
Candidates are already being discussed and among the names mentioned is Ohio State interim head coach Luke Fickell.
Fickell has said he is interested in the job and has spoken to Pittsburgh officials about the head coaching vacancy.
Florida International head coach Mario Cristobal reportedly interviewed yesterday for the opening. Another candidate that has been mentioned is Wisconsin offensive coordinator Paul Chryst.
Chryst is scheduled to interview today.
While these may not be the only candidates, they are the names that have been mentioned.
The pressure will be on Pittsburgh to make a good hire, something they have not done with the previous few men they have chosen for the job.
Hopefully for a Pittsburgh team, one of these coaches will bring some stability to a program that has been through more head coaches than anybody in the past 13 months.
