The decision to hire the next Massachusetts football coach will go through representatives from the Athletic Department, University and former players.
Last Wednesday, Director of Athletics John McCutcheon announced that a consultative committee made up of himself, Todd Diacon, Juan Jarrett, Glenn Wong, John Kennedy, Jaime Seguin, Dan Markowski, Marcel Shipp and Brian McNally will overlook the hiring decision for the next head coach, according to a UMass Athletics press release.
“We wanted to have representation from various groups with a particular interest in having former players involved in the process,” McCutcheon told the Springfield Republican last week.
Diacon, Jarrett, Wong and Kennedy are all employees of the University. Diacon is the Deputy Chancellor, Jarrett is the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Human Resources, Wong is a professor in the Sports Management Program at the University as well as a Faculty Athletic Representative at the school and Kennedy serves as the President of the UMass Amherst Foundation and the Chairman of the Athletics Committee of the Athletics Committee, according to the release.
Seguin is the Executive Associate Athletic Director and Associate Senior Women’s Administrator for the Athletics Department at the University, where he handles business operations and long-range business planning, according to the release.
Shipp comes on to the committee as one of the most prolific running backs in UMass football history. He holds school records in rushing yards (6,250), carries (1,215), rushing touchdowns (58) and was named a two-time All-American during his career. He also went on to play nine seasons in the NFL for the Arizona Cardinals from 2001-07 and the Houston Texans in 2008.
Markowski, also a former player, currently serves as the Associate Athletic Director for Facilities and Operations. As a player, he was named a two-time All Yankee Conference offensive lineman when he played from 1993-96.
Lastly, McNally is currently a financial representative for Northwestern Mutual in Boston. He was also a former player at UMass, where he earned honors as a letterwinner and served as a team captain during his career from 1974-76.
The committee is formed on the heels of McCutcheon’s decision to fire former head coach Kevin Morris on Nov. 21. Morris served as the head coach for three years and attained a 16-17 record during his stint, including going 5-6 in 2011.
The next coach to be added will also ring in a new era of UMass football, as the team will make its debut in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) as part of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) in 2012. UMass previously played in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), where it played in the Yankee Conference, Atlantic 10 and most recently the Colonial Athletic Association.
According to the Republican, McCutcheon would not note how far along he is in the search process, but did say he is looking at those with FBS experience.
“We are actively in the process and that’s about as far as I can go on it right now,” McCutcheon told the Republican.
On Saturday, the Daily Hampshire Gazette reported that UMass is interested in pursuing Texas Tech offensive coordinator and UMass alum Neal Brown.
Stephen Hewitt can be reached at [email protected].
