Football: Rumors abound as search heats up

The search for a replacement for former football head coach Roger Hughes, who was relieved of his responsibilities in late November, marches on, and rumors about potential candidates continue to circulate on the internet.

The site footballscoop.com, which has covered the topic extensively, reported on Wednesday that Citadel head coach Kevin Higgins is not interested in the Princeton vacancy. Higgins had a first-hand look at Princeton’s program after playing a home-and-away series with the Tigers over the last two seasons.

The site also reported that Elon University head coach Pete Lembo, Lafayette offensive coordinator Mickey Fein, former Notre Dame head coach Bob Davie and Lafayette assistant coach Stan Clayton are all interested in the job.

Lembo was a four-year starter in the offensive line for Georgetown between 1988 and 1992. After serving as a graduate assistant at the University of Albany and working brief stints at Hampden-Sydney College and Dartmouth, he moved on to Lehigh. Lembo served as an assistant coach for the Mountain Hawks for three seasons before taking over as head coach in 2001. In 2005, Elon hired him after he helped guide Lehigh to eight consecutive top-25 seasons in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).

At Elon, Lembo has fielded a competitive team that regularly ranks in the top 25 and contends for the Southern Conference championship. The Southern Conference is considered by some the strongest league in the FCS.

Mickey Fein just wrapped up his first season as offensive coordinator at Lafayette. Fein, University of Maine ’99, played two years of Arena football before beginning his coaching career as offensive coordinator at Barnstable High School in Hyannis, Mass. Fein then made stops at Maine and Tennessee-Martin before arriving at Murray State, where he directed a formidable offense that finished 20th in the nation in total offense with 430.5 yards per game in 2007. In 2008, he moved on to Lafayette as passing game coordinator.

This past season, Fein was promoted to offensive coordinator and immediately made his presence felt. The Leopards averaged 406.9 yards and 28.6 points per game and finished third in the Patriot League.

Davie has not coached since 2001. He served as head coach at Notre Dame from 1997 to 2000, following the retirement of Lou Holtz. He compiled a 35-25 record, highlighted by 9-3 seasons in 1998 and 2000.

Clayton is the offensive line coach at Lafayette. A New Jersey native, Clayton won a national championship in 1986 at Penn State. He was drafted in the 10th round of the 1988 NFL draft by the Atlanta Falcons and played four seasons in the league. Clayton has the advantage of being a former coach at Princeton, having coached the Tigers’ offensive line and run game for six seasons. During his time here, he coached Ross Tucker ’01 and Dennis Norman ’01, both of whom went on to play with the NFL.

Rutgers tight-ends coach Joe Susan and Central Michigan offensive coordinator Mike Bajakian are also cited as potential candidates for the position of head coach. footballscoop.com also reported that current Princeton offensive line coach Adam Hollis has interviewed with Georgia Southern University head coach Jeff Monken for a potential position there.