Once again, Florida athletics director Jeremy Foley’s most hectic time of year will coincide with the holidays.
Coach Urban Meyer’s resignation Wednesday — just more than two weeks before Christmas — leaves Foley with a football head coaching position to fill for the second time in the last 347 days. Meyer announced he would retire last Dec. 26, but he changed his mind the next day.
“He owes me a Christmas vacation from last year, and now he’s going to owe me another one,” Foley said, joking. “He’ll be at home sipping eggnog, and I’ll be out on an airplane somewhere.”
Most high school prospects will sign letters of intent in about two months, meaning Foley will have to act fast if he wants Florida to land another top-five recruiting class. As long as that void exists, opposing coaches will be able to attack the Gators’ perceived lack of stability.
Rumors have already begun to swirl about who Foley will hire. Within hours of Meyer’s resignation, Foley said he received several text messages and e-mails insinuating he had already hired the next UF coach.
But Foley said he has yet to contact a candidate, choosing to dedicate Wednesday to working with Meyer before starting the search today. He acknowledged the need to fill the void quick, and he hopes to have a new coach within about two and a half weeks.
At the same time, he does not want to rush his decision.
“Coaching searches, I don’t care if it’s football, baseball, gymnastics, whatever, you’ve got to get in front of them,” Foley said. “You need to find out if they’re a fit. Not just can they coach, but if they’re a fit for this institution, for this community, for this athletic program. … Sometimes people think deals get cut in the back room. That’s got to happen face-to-face.”
Some speculate that Mississippi State’s Dan Mullen and Louisville’s Charlie Strong will be at the top of Foley’s list, as both served under Meyer during the ’06 and ’08 championship seasons. Mullen left after 2008, and Strong was hired by the Cardinals at the end of last season.
If Florida’s new coach is part of a team playing in a January bowl game, Foley said he will allow him to stick with that team until after its finale. In January 2005, one month after Meyer was hired, he coached Utah through the Utes’ 35-7 win against Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl.
Mississippi State will play Michigan in the Gator Bowl on Jan. 1. Louisville will play Southern Miss in the St. Petersburg Bowl on Dec. 21.
Uncertainty for assistants: Foley said he called or left voice mails Wednesday for every assistant coach, many of whom are on recruiting trips. While he said he supports all of Meyer’s assistants, Foley recognized that their careers in Gainesville may be finished.
“When there’s a coaching change such as this, certainly there’s some turmoil — recruiting turmoil, fan turmoil, player turmoil. And assistant coaches is the same way,” he said. “Everybody knows a new coach is going to bring in some of his staff as well, so I’m sure there’s some change in the future.”
Foley said no current UF assistant has expressed interest in succeeding Meyer yet.