Mike Bellotti after Oregon's victory over Oklahoma State in the 2008 Holiday Bowl. Photo by Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE
There has been increasing chatter about Mike Bellotti in regard to the Arizona Wildcats football coaching search, but the former Oregon coach denied he is a candidate.
“There is nothing to this,” Bellotti told Ken Goe of the Oregonian on Thursday. “That is the easiest thing I can say.” Read the rest of the story at OregonLive.com.
Bellotti, 60, was 116-55 in 14 seasons as Oregon’s head coach before stepping down in March 2009 to become athletic director. He left that job a year later to become a college football analyst for ESPN.
Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne has, as promised, kept a fairly tight lid on any gossip about the coaching search. Byrne’s first target has been believed to be Boise State’s Chris Petersen; the two had a close relationship when both were at Oregon in the 1990s (as was Bellotti).
Byrne fired Mike Stoops on Oct. 10 after the Wildcats were off to a 1-5 start.