Could Vanderbilt be looking outside the college ranks for its next head coach?
ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Indianapolis Colts offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton is a candidate for the Commodores' coaching position.
Colts OC Pep Hamilton is a candidate for the Vanderbilt HC job, according to multiple league sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 15, 2014
Hamilton, 39, joined the Colts before the 2013 season. Prior to his tenure in Indy, he was at Stanford for three seasons and served as the Cardinal's offensive coordinator for two. He worked with Andrew Luck, the Colts' quarterback, in 2011 at Stanford.
With Luck at Stanford, the Cardinal had the No. 11 offense in the country in yards per game and averaged 6.7 yards per play, which was fourth in the country. In 2012, after Luck was the first overall pick in the draft, Stanford's yardage totals fell off and the Cardinal averaged 5.4 yards per play.
24/7 Sports reported that St. Louis Rams offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer is interviewing with Vanderbilt Wednesday. Schottenheimer has served as an NFL assistant throughout his entire coaching career save for a season in 1999 at Syracuse. CBS Sports reported that current Stanford defensive coordinator Derek Mason is expected to interview with the school Thursday.
If Vanderbilt doesn't target a college head coach for its vacancy, it would possibly mean an end to the 2013-14 college football coaching carousel. With James Franklin's departure to Penn State, the Vandy job is one of two coaching vacancies remaining. The only other open position is at UAB.
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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