DeWayne Walker set the coaching carousel spinning once more with his late departure from New Mexico State. (AP)

Tommy Tuberville’s sitting by the phone* and Jimmy Sexton’s got that particular sparkle in his eye. It can mean only one thing: The coach firin’ season is upon us once more. We’ll be tracking the carousel of progress, right here, for as long as it takes to stop spinning. Raise a glass to times past, won’t you? * Well, not anymore, but never tell us we don’t have the gift of very specific prophecy through throwaway jokes.

New Mexico State [updated 02.01.2013]

• Who’s out: DeWayne Walker, who jumps to the NFL with less than two weeks remaining between now and Signing Day. And not even for a coordinating gig: Walker will coach defensive backs for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Walker released the following statement through the athletic department: “I really appreciate the opportunity that Dr. Boston and New Mexico State gave me to be a Division I head football coach. Unfortunately, I did not get the program as far as I would have liked from a wins and losses standpoint. But, we do have a better locker room, better kids and a better foundation for the program moving forward. There are a lot of people that I want to thank for their support and will be reaching out to those individuals in the coming days. They have helped me in moving the program forward. I am excited about starting a new chapter in my coaching career, as is my family. I wish New Mexico State great success in the future and wish everyone the best. Go Aggies!” • Who’s in: Doug Martin — the one who played at Kentucky, not the one who played at Boise State. Although if Martin The Younger is really so opposed to his excellent nickname, we’re gonna refer to Martin The Elder as coach Muscle Hamster instead. It’s been a whirlwind courtship for Martin and the Aggies: He was announced as offensive coordinator on January 17, temporarily promoted to interim head coach on January 24 and will be officially announced as DeWayne Walker’s successor on Monday, February 4. Martin’s previous head coaching experience consists of a seven-year stint at Kent State, from 2004-2010. Read More…

Despite leading FIU to its first two bowl berths, Mario Cristobal was fired Wednesday. (Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)

Florida International has already scrubbed Mario Cristobal’s biography from the school’s athletic department website. Just a few short minutes after Cristobal’s dismissal was announced, all links to his bio began redirecting to the Panthers’ front page. That’s probably a good idea, since the bio starts out like this:

Mario Cristobal will enter his sixth season as head coach of the FIU football program in 2012 and he has become widely-regarded in the coaching profession for the impressive success his tenure has brought to Florida International University.

Not only has Cristobal established a rock-solid foundation for the FIU program to strongly build upon, he was also the architect for one of the greatest turnarounds in college football and sustained periods of success in recent seasons.

Not solid enough for AD Pete Garcia, apparently, who has maybe the best formal job title on the planet: “Executive Director of Sports and Entertainment.” After leading the Panthers to their first two bowl appearances in program history in 2010 and 2011, Cristobal entered 2012 at the head of a team favored by many (including yours truly) to win the Sun Belt. An unfortunate string of injuries hobbled FIU early and often, and the Panthers finished the 2012 season with just three wins, over Akron, Florida Atlantic and South Alabama. Still, do a quick spin through the social media sphere of your choice this afternoon and you’ll see some heavy scorn and disbelief being flung in the direction of FIU’s administration. Safe to say nobody expected this.

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