Interim head coach Matt Luke probably isn’t going to get the full-time job with the Ole Miss Rebels.
The Ole Miss Rebels have been trounced two weeks in a row by SEC West foes, so what better time to post a job opening for head football coach?
Ole Miss posted the job opening on Saturday afternoon right as it was being blown out by Auburn in a 44-23 loss, via the school’s official website. Whether that was related to the drubbing at the hands of the Tigers or was scheduled to go out on Saturday no matter what remains to be seen, but the Rebels are definitely getting a new head coach this offseason.
The Rebels find themselves in this position after discovering former head coach Hugh Freeze made calls to escort services using a school phone. Freeze resigned in July, and more details about his shady recruiting practices have since emerged.
Rather than find another head coach with such a short timeframe to work with, Ole Miss decided to place an interim tag on offensive coordinator Matt Luke. With the Rebels now sitting at 2-3, Luke does not look like a candidate to be hired by Ole Miss later on this year.
Luke got off to a good enough start with easy victories over South Alabama and Tennessee Martin to guide the bowl-ineligible Rebels to a 2-0 start. Since then, Ole Miss has lost to a middling California team, and been destroyed by Alabama and Auburn by a combined 100-26 margin over the past two games.
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No big name head coach is likely to touch the Ole Miss job with more NCAA punishment looming, so it won’t hurt to take applications from anyone. Unfortunately, the job description mentioned some pretty strict requirements, including knowledge of NCAA compliance and working some nights or weekends.