Golden Could Be Penn State Target
MIAMI (CBSMiami.com) – The reports Wednesday that Penn State University head coach Joe Paterno will retire at the end of the season sent shockwaves through college football and could impact the University of Miami in a big way.
Miami Hurricanes head coach Al Golden is a graduate of Penn State and played tight end for the Lions for three seasons.
Golden took over at UM immediately before the Nevin Shapiro scandal broke and he has since said he wasn't told about the depth of the allegations.
Golden has also coached at Penn State under Paterno as the team's linebacking and recruiting coordinator in 2000.
When Golden took over Temple University in 2005, most pundits believed that Golden was biding his time to eventually take over the Nittany Lions job once Paterno retired.
But, with Paterno showing no signs of retiring, Golden instead came to "The U." He's since built a solid season despite the Shapiro scandal threatening to derail the team on the season.
Golden has said that he's happy as the head coach of the University of Miami, but the rumor mill is already churning that Golden, former Florida Gators head coach Urban Meyer, and Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano could be candidates for the job.
Golden will have to get out in front of the story if he's going to stay the coach at "The U." If he allows his name to get dragged into the discussion, it's going to make recruiting almost impossible for the Canes head coach.
Recruits will begin asking whether Golden is in for the long haul, or if he's already starting to look at Penn State University.
A lot will depend on whether Penn State is actually interested in Golden, but given their program's current state, Golden would be perfect for the job.
