The list for potential football coaches has been narrowed to three finalists: former University of Miami Head Coach, Larry Coker; Tulsa associate Head Coach/co-defensive coordinator, Paul Randolph; and Northwest Missouri Head Coach, Mel Tjeerdsma.
Of the three, one stands out, Coker. He won a Bowl Championchip Series national championship with the Hurricanes in 2001, and led them to the national championship game the following year. Also, he has been a college football TV analyst for ESPN the past two seasons.
That’s great, but don’t let his rep devalue the other two candidates.
Who is Paul Randolph? He is from Gainesville, Georgia, and is an alumnus of Tennessee-Martin. Rudolph is currently Tulsa’s associate head coach/co-defensive coordinator. His rush-defense ranked 37th nationally in 2008. He was the defensive ends coach at Alabama from 2003-2005, which led the nation in scoring defense and was second in total defense. Randolph has coached in five bowl games and coached at West Virginia, Toledo, Illinois State, Valdosta State and Tennessee-Martin
Who is Mel Tjeerdsma? First, his name is pronounced CHURCH-mah. Tjeerdsma, a native of Springfield, South Dakota, is the current head coach at Northwest Missouri State. He was the 2007 Field Turf and Howie Long Division II Coach of the Year.. Tjeerdsma has guided the Bearcats to nine MIAA championships overall, two NCAA national championships and five title game appearances in the last 10 seasons.
I encourage all to comment and let their opinion to be known. UTSA officials hope to pick a final candidate by next week.