Paul Petrino did not, as far as we are able to discern, find any spare assistants lurking in this overturned barrel. (AP)

By Holly Anderson

Friday night’s Idaho spring game was characterized sunnily in a school release that praised “a potent offense with a hungry, hard-hitting defense.” Today, the Vandals have found themselves still hungering on defense — for coaches. [SFX: CLOWN HORN] The school announced Monday that linebackers coach Mike Anderson and defensive line coach Patrick Libey have both left not just the Vandals, but football:

University of Idaho football assistants Mike Anderson and Patrick Libey have left the program to pursue opportunities in the private sector. Anderson was offered part ownership and is the manager of an start-up company in Lewiston. He said until the offer was presented, he never envisioned leaving coaching. [...] Libey has decided to pursue other career opportunities and extended his best wishes to Petrino and the Vandals.

Anderson and Libey were, according to Idaho’s athletic department, the only two Vandal alumni on Paul Petrino’s new staff.

Energetic traveler Jeff Choate, doing a little leisurely web-slinging. (Stanley Brewster/Zumapress.com)

By Holly Anderson

Following a one-season gig on Mike Leach’s staff, Washington State linebackers coach Jeff Choate left Pullman in January to join up with Sean Kugler in El Paso to serve as UTEP’s defensive coordinator. At the time, Kugler called Choate an “Energizer bunny” and praised his constant motor.

That motor, it turns out, is still running, and it’s taking Choate on another big geographic hop: Florida announced this morning that Choate has been added to Will Muschamp’s Gators staff, where he’ll serve as special teams coordinator and outside linebackers coach. In a school release, Muschamp praised Choate’s “high energy.”

A cursory examination of a world map suggests that if Choate’s current energetic travel patterns continue, he’ll be coaching American football somewhere in the vicinity of Caracas come 2014. We wish Choate the very best of luck with his world tour.

He already has red and black stuff from Tampa Bay and Oakland! SO MANY THINGS MAKE SENSE RIGHT NOW. (AP)

Incontrovertible evidence that Mark Richt is on the hot seat, via none other than the Georgia athletic department:

Former Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Oakland Raiders head coach and current ESPN and ABC NFL analyst Jon Gruden will be the featured speaker at the 2013 University of Georgia Spring Football coaches’ clinic scheduled for Thursday, March 28 and Friday, March 29.

Bringing next offseason’s storylines to you a year ahead of time is just one of the many services we offer here at Campus Union. Have a great day.

Prepare ye the way of the Mumme-stangs? (AP)

This is gonna be fun: Hal Mumme has finally been officially announced as a member of June Jones’ staff at SMU, where he’ll serve as the Mustangs’ passing game coordinator. This seems like a thing that Hal Mumme would be good at. Jones spoke with the Dallas Morning News back in February about Mumme’s potential role:

“We’ve been friends for 35 to 40 years,’’ Jones said by phone Saturday. “He believes the same things I do about offense. I tried to hire him three years ago but it didn’t work out.” [...] Jones said he will remain the primary offensive coordinator and will continue to call plays. Jason Phillips, brought in from Houston before last season as co-offensive coordinator and receiving coach, will have more input in alterations to the Run-and-Shoot as Jones seeks to enhance the passing attack.

The Run-and-Shoot with enhanced Air Raid qualities? Internet, it’s Wednesday afternoon in March, and you know your duty — time to name Hal Mumme’s passing attack for the Mustangs:

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TOB loaded up and headed north http://t.co/XZxogF5lGu—
Lee Williams (@leewilliams78) March 04, 2013

Via Backing the Pack, we have never loved Notorious TOB more.

The logo on the cap changes, but Tim Brewster appears content to keep his services with reddish-colored teams.

Big week for unceremoniously ousted former FBS head coaches: First Neil Callaway catches on with Bobby Petrino’s merry band to coach the O-line at Western Kentucky; now Tim Brewster is leaving Mississippi State to coach tight ends for Jimbo Fisher at Florida State. This is sorta funny, because if you’ll recall, Brewster has a very recent history of suggesting a rival’s assistant may not be long for his current position:

Why yes, that’s Mississippi State receivers coach Tim Brewster, formerly of the University of Minnesota, speculating on the future of Ole Miss assistant coach Chris Kiffin, who is rumored to be taking a job with the Dallas Cowboys.

Chris Kiffin has yet to publicly respond to this latest development. But really, T-Brew — may we call you T-Brew? — take a page from what you tell your players every time they leave your care for even the shortest span of time: Never say anything on the Internet. Unlike your attachment to Starkville, it sticks forever.

Sources tell us Jim Bollman is expected to accept the Michigan State OC job—
FootballScoop Staff (@footballscoop) February 27, 2013

In his only OC season Jim Bollman took Braxton Miller, a veteran line he hand-picked, NFL talent at RB/WR & finished 107th in total offense.—
Ramzy Nasrallah (@ramzy) February 27, 2013

Symmetry begets order, so we suppose it’s only natural Mark Dantonio would want to complement his Surly Hillocks defense with … whatever this is going to be.

Mario Cristobal, as far as we know, is not related to Ron Turner, but you never know. (AP)

Ron Turner’s new staffing plan at Florida International has seemingly been based — up to this point — on hiring as many coaches related to Ron Turner as he can find. (The Miami Herald did a marvelously succinct summary of the collection earlier this month, when Turner sons Cameron and Morgan were brought on board with the Golden Panthers: “Morgan Turner joins brother Cameron Turner, FIU’s quarterbacks and wide receivers coach. Ron Turner, who’ll serve as his own offensive coordinator, knows the younger Turners the same way. He knew their mother, Wendy Turner, first.”)

Turner’s scheme took a significant hit Tuesday with the departure of Morgan to Stanford, where he’ll coach tight ends. Morgan had served as an assistant on the Cardinal’s staff since 2010 before joining up with his family FIU in early February. Choosing between life in Miami or Palo Alto? It’s a rough life young Morgan Turner leads. Per Turner-the-Elder’s official school bio, he has no remaining sons left to fill the void created by Morgan’s absence.

With Wes McGriff leaving Ole Miss for the Saints, only 18 college programs have the same 9 assistants now as at the start of the season.—
Pete Roussel (@coachingsearch) February 26, 2013

Despairing just a little because you think you might need to make actual, physical flash cards to keep up with which new assistant coaches have gone where this offseason, to say nothing of the godzillion head coaches who’ve swapped jobs in a ceaseless and surly square dance? You’re not alone.

• Good morning. If you’re reading this, you’ve survived a weekend without football of any sort. Army’s Black Knights, bless them, begin spring practice tomorrow, but until then keep up your winter conditioning with Florida’s spirit squads.

• Coach-hirin’ season! Utah has just announced the hiring of Dennis Erickson, and we’re just going to paste in an excerpt from the athletic department here with some emphasis added:

Dennis Erickson, who compiled a 179-96-1 record in 23 seasons as a head college coach and won two national championships, has joined Utah’s staff as the co-offensive coordinator. The 65-year-old Erickson, whose background also includes six years as an NFL head coach, will share the coordinator title with 26-year-old Brian Johnson.

BUDDY COP STORY, BUT WITH COACHES. SITCOM WAITING TO HAPPEN. HIJINX ABOUT TO ENSUE. Brian Johnson and Dennis Erickson becoming besties is now all we want out of the 2013 season.

Elsewhere on the perpetually active college football coaching carousel: Todd Grantham withdrew from consideration for the Saints DC job on Friday … Kennedy Polamalu is out as offensive coordinator at USC … Gregg Brandon will coach quarterbacks and coordinate the offense at New Mexico State.

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