40 Acres Sports

Well it’s official. Maybe. Texas coach [tag]Will Muschamp[/tag] has finally released an official statement. From the Dallas Morning News…

Muschamp clarified his intentions Wednesday night.

“I’m happy at Texas and plan to be here for a long time,” Muschamp said through a Texas football spokesman.

He added that he has not interviewed for any other jobs nor does he have intention to do so.

While Muschamp did not address any specific rumors or schools, his name has surfaced most recently at Tennessee after Lane Kiffin was hired at Southern California.

Previous Muschamp to Tennessee updates

• From this morning… Tennessee offers head coaching position to Will Muschamp?
• Say what now? Muschamp flies to Knoxville, meets with Tennessee

Defensive coordinator Will Muschamp will follow Mack Brown as next Texas head coach. Right?

It’s been a wild day.

This morning everyone’s sources within UT were 100% confident that Texas defensive coordinator [tag]Will Muschamp[/tag] wasn’t going anywhere. That was the story for most of the day. Orangebloods, Inside Texas, and the Statesman all spoke to multiple sources in the am and there appeared to be no issue, no smoke, and no chance the Horns would lose their big name coordinator.

But the official confirmation never came.

As the day wore on it became more and more troubling that the University had not made an announcement about Muschamp. Nothing official was coming out of Belmont. And coaches of high school recruits were reporting they hadn’t heard any status updates either. What in the world was going on?

Will Muschamp had flown to Knoxville at 5:45 am to meet with Tennessee. Say what?

From about 4 pm until 7 pm that’s all we heard. Everything from the morning seemed false. Not only was this a big name school who was interested in him, but Muschamp had actually already met with them in person. And no one’s sources had said anything about it. Three hours with no new news. That’s not good.

Finally around 7 pm IT editor Ross Lucksinger tweets that, yes, Muschamp did meet with the little UT this morning but two sources have told him that Coach Boom turned down their $3 million offer and is staying at Texas. A Knoxville radio station reports the same and that the Vols are moving on in their coaching search.

And finally, the saga comes full circle and all the news is once again that Muschamp is saying and more importantly the Texas staff is calling up recruits to tell them. Orangebloods and Inside Texas are now both reporting that recruits are starting to hear from the staff that Coach Muschamp isn’t going anywhere. Whew.

That’s all we know. And I’m not even sure how much we know is true. If/when Texas finally makes an official we’ll keep you in the loop.

Update: According to Muschamp himself, reports of him interviewing with Tennessee or any other team are false. He’s happy at Texas. (10:44 pm)

• From this morning… Tennessee offers head coaching position to Will Muschamp?
• Final word? Will Muschamp says he’s staying at Texas

Will Texas coach Will Muschamp be wearing the wrong orange for the wrong UT next year?

Update: Will Muschamp says he didn’t interview with anyone and he’s happy at Texas. More info. (10:31 pm)

Wow. The college football coaching dominoes fall fast.

Saturday word broke that the Seattle Seahawks would hire USC’s Pete Carroll as their new head coach. Yesterday evening, instead of hiring Jeff Fisher or Jack Del Rio the Trojans bring in the obnoxious controversial Lane Kiffin after only one year at Tennessee. That started “riots” in Knoxville.

Are riots in Austin next?

According to Volquest.com, Texas defensive coordinator [tag]Will Muschamp[/tag] is at the top of Tennessee’s wishlist and they have reportedly already offered him the position. Muschamp is one of the two highest paid coordinators in the country and has been named Texas’ head coach-in-waiting, but head coach [tag]Mack Brown[/tag] just signed another contract extension and looks like he could be at Texas for several more seasons. Muschamp also does not have a buyout in his contract, meaning it would cost Tennessee nothing beyond his salary to get him out of Austin.

Muschamp has repeatedly stated that how much he loves Texas and loves Austin and that he intends to stay the defensive coordinator for the Longhorns until it’s his turn. But things change. Is the opportunity to be the head coach of an SEC power too good to pass up?

Both Geoff Ketchum of Orangebloods.com and the Statesman’s Suzanne Halliburton have reported last night and this morning that every source at Texas they talk to says Muschamp is saying. The one person no one has talked to is Muschamp himself.

I don’t expect the Muschamp rumors to last past today, this thing is going to go down fast. Either the school will make an announcement he’s staying (and probably a raise) or we’ll find out he’s gone. We’ll have more news when we hear it.

Update: InsideTexas.com now also reporting more sources saying Muschamp will turn down the Vols. (10:54 am)

Update: News has taken a turn for the worse. Seems once confident sources are now unsure what is going to happen. (4:40 pm)

Update: Will Muschamp flew to Knoxville this morning to meet with Tennessee. He reportedly turns down a $3 mil offer. More info. (8:30 pm)

Update: Finally. Will Muschamp says he’s happy and he’s staying at Texas. (10:31 pm)

Demarco Cobbs, Oklahoma's best player, is coming to Texas to play football. (Image: TigerRag)

Yesterday the Texas Longhorns received a surprise commitment from Oklahoma athlete [tag]Demarco Cobbs[/tag], the top player in the state and one of the best athletes in the 2010 class. Cobbs was on Texas’ radar earlier in the year but this commit comes completely out of left field. He’s been committed to [tag]Tennessee[/tag] since September and his name had not been mentioned at all recently on Texas recruiting sites in some time.

Cobbs could play receiver, safety, or linebacker for the Horns. Some are wondering with the odd circumstances if Cobbs is a solid commit, but he sounds solid when talking to ESPN’s Gerry Hamiliton below:

“In the beginning, Texas was always my dream school,” said Cobbs, who is the No. 17 player in the ESPNU 150. “I was being recruited by Texas in the beginning and wanted to commit, but it was before they started taking commitments. Then things just didn’t happen then. We started talking about a month ago. I had been talking to Coach (Bruce) Chambers the most. I exchanged e-mails with coach (Mack) Brown and had been talking with a few of the Texas coaches. It’s nothing against Tennessee. Even when I committed, I really wasn’t for sure. I always had Texas in the back of my mind.”

The switch came as a surprise, but Cobbs simply followed his heart in switching to his childhood favorite Texas.

“I grew up watching Texas and wanting to play there,” Cobbs said. “It’s not too far away from home, and I can’t go wrong going to a place that is great every year that also provides a great education too. It’s where I want to be.”

Link: Demarco Cobbs follows heart to Austin

Well this weekend is the game we have been waiting for since last season. Texas versus Texas Tech in a huge revenge game. Honestly there really isn’t much else on this Saturday, so make sure to plan your day around the night game. Let’s see what else can fill the time:

Tennessee at (1) Florida (-30) – 3:30 PM EST on CBS. I don’t expect this to be much of a game (either does Vegas), but I am interested in seeing how serious Florida takes this game after the comments Lane Kiffin made last season towards Urban Meyer and his team. Florida has probably had this game pinned up in their locker room for quite some time now, and they will probably take out all of their frustrations on a weak Tennessee team. Enjoy the beautiful CBS HD picture and take Florida in this one.

(19) Nebraska at (13) Virginia Tech (-5) – 3:30 PM EST on ESPN. If you are looking for a physical game, this is the one for you. Both of these defenses fly around the ball and expect to see many big collisions. This is Nebraska’s first big test of the season and I think they will get off to a slow start. Virginia Tech is really tough to beat at home, and with an early lead I expect them to cruise to victory. Take Virginia Tech and give the points.

Texas Tech at (2) Texas (-18) – 8:00 PM EST on ABC. One question I have hear is how badly do we have to beat them in order to stop seeing the Michael “Oh My Phong is Ringing” Crabtree highlight from last year? My guess is 30, and honestly that could happen tomorrow. Muschamp has had a whole year to prepare for this game and I think our defense is faster and smarter from a year ago. Taylor Potts may be like Chuck Norris and we know how crazy the Tech fans can get, but I think Texas pulls away easily late in the game. Take Texas and give the points.

Barely any Texas talk but ESPN has a brief look at the teams in the East Region of the 2009 NCAA Tournament. Watch Rece Davis, Digger Phelps, and Scott Bilas break down the region below…