Shawn Eichorst resigned his post as University of Miami (Fla.) athletic director after about 18 months on the job, the Associated Press reported, and all signs point to him replacing Tom Osborne as Nebraska's AD.
The hire is quick and decisive for Nebraska, and seemingly a good fit. Eichorst was Wisconsin's deputy athletic director from 2009-11, under former Nebraska linebacker Barry Alvarez. Alvarez recommended Eichorst highly for the Miami job, and likely did the same for the Nebraska job. And it's tough to blame Eichorst, who moves into a good spot in a conference he knows well.
[More: Ex-PSU coach Mike McQueary files $4 million whistleblower lawsuit]
But it still puts Miami in a pretty bad spot.
The Hurricanes have been waiting for NCAA sanctions stemming from a Yahoo! Sports report in August of 2011 that meticulously outlined impermissible benefits from a booster. Now the school is looking for a new athletic director in the short term -- "scrambling" is the term used in the AP report -- two days before it plays Notre Dame at Chicago, and with potential sanctions looming. The AP reported the university is dealing with other issues, such as declining attendance at football games and financial problems with its medical school.
The AP report says Eichorst was believed to be "working closely with the NCAA during the joint inquiry into the athletic department" regarding the possible sanctions, and now he's gone. Miami could have a tough time finding a new full-time athletic director amid that turmoil.
While this seems to be a good hire for Nebraska and a good move for Eichorst, it's about the last thing Miami needed to hear right now. The decision the Hurricanes make on their next AD hire will be a critical one.
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