

Michigan State Spartans head coach Mark Dantonio celebrates the Big Ten title. / Andrew Weber, USA TODAY Sports

It's been a quiet few days in the Texas coaching search, which is probably a good thing. The lack of urgency to make a move indicates one of two things: The Longhorns are going to take their time, or they plan on pursuing a coach who isn't ready to talk to them yet.

Since Mack Brown stepped down, the same names have consistently appeared on every news media member's "list." You know them by now. Jim Harbaugh. Jimbo Fisher. Gus Malzahn. Art Briles. Charlie Strong. Jim Mora. James Franklin. On and on and on.

All those names would make sense at Texas for different reasons. All of them are hot in coaching circles and would be lauded as a great hire by the media if Texas were to land one of them.

Of course, Texas doesn't need a hot coach. It needs the right coach. No matter who's in charge, the Longhorns have plenty of sizzle. What they haven't had under Brown is an identity, toughness and player development.

Recruiting will never be a problem at Texas. It's still the most attractive program in a state that produces more than 300 Division I signees a year. The school practically recruits itself. Where Brown failed too often the last few years was identifying which 20 out of those 300 were going to fit in, work hard and become great players, not just great prospects.

Texas doesn't need a great recruiter as much as it needs a great evaluator and developer.

With that in mind, here are some names you won't see on most lists. But you should.

1. Steve Spurrier: It's probably a long shot, but don't you at least have to ask? Spurrier is 68, which isn't ideal for this search, but he's a young 68 and doesn't seem like he's getting ready for retirement. If Spurrier has seven or eight more good years in him, that's enough to get Texas back to national title contention. Not enough people acknowledge it, but Spurrier's run at South Carolina is one of the all-time great coaching jobs in SEC history. He took a program that was absolutely foundering and has won consistently at a level that is really hard to pull off at South Carolina. And make no mistake: He'd win huge at Texas. Huge. (His Longhorn Network potential is also off the charts.) Would Spurrier make the move at this stage of his life and career? Probably not. He seems pretty settled in at South Carolina. But with a lot of talent leaving the program this year, the Gamecocks probably will take a little step back soon. Would the timing be just right?

2. Mike Gundy: According to a lot of pundits, Gundy is disqualified because he's 1-8 against Oklahoma, and a Texas coach can't lose that much to Oklahoma. That reasoning is, frankly, pretty stupid. Gundy is a proven winner in the Big 12 at a place where it's historically hard to win big. Those aren't superficial wins, either. Oklahoma State is now looked at as a program in the same echelon as Texas and Oklahoma among Big 12 contenders. Give Gundy the advantages that Texas has, and you can bet that 1-8 record against Oklahoma would turn around pretty quickly.

3. Mark Dantonio: He's not the most exciting guy, but if you think what Texas needs most is competence and organization, he's a perfect fit. The last four years at Michigan State he's gone 11-2, 11-3, 7-6 and 12-1. That's pretty incredible. He's also a Texas native, which can't hurt (even though his persona doesn't exude "Texan" vibes). Also, in an era when the Big 12 is all about offense, it might not be bad for Texas to go against the grain and make a defensive-minded hire.

4. Gary Andersen: Spend any time around Andersen, and it's easy to see he's the total package. Terrific coach, engaging personality, great evaluator of talent. His teams play tough and disciplined football. His résumé as a head coach isn't particularly long, but it's impressive. He built Utah State from nothing, then went to Wisconsin and showed once again he's a terrific coach by going 9-3 and smoothly managing the transition from Bret Bielema. Though he's not from Texas, he has recruited the state quite a bit over the years and found some gems such as Chuckie Keeton, who starred at Utah State. (Think Texas wouldn't have been a lot better off the past few years with Keeton at quarterback?) Andersen wouldn't be a "win the press conference" type of hire, but he'd be a slam-dunk success at Texas. He's Urban Meyer without the fake piety.

5. Pat Fitzgerald: If we were having this conversation in late September, his name would be hotter than a firecracker. Three months later, you don't hear a peep about him. Did anything really change about Fitzgerald's ability as a coach in that span of time? Of course not. Granted, Northwestern had a bad season - a luckless, awful, disappointing season. But guess what? It's Northwestern. Those things can happen when you combine key injuries with flat-out bad luck and ultimately a loss of confidence. Fitzgerald is a superstar at a non-superstar program. Even as poorly as things went for the Wildcats this year, you can't ignore that Fitzgerald previously led them to five consecutive bowl games. And at 39, he's only going to get better.

6. Bronco Mendenhall: He might be a little too low-key for the Texas job, but he's 82-33 at BYU, and you simply can't ignore him. There just aren't very many coaches out there who have been as successful or consistent. Can you imagine what Texas would have looked like the past couple years with a Bronco Mendenhall defense? The atmosphere around the program would have been totally different. Caveat: There's more to Mendenhall's connection to BYU than just football. It might be hard to pull him away from that mission.

7. Mark Richt: He's pretty locked in at Georgia, but if he wants to win a national title, it's easier to do in Austin. You also have to wonder at some point whether the flak he takes from the Georgia fan base eventually will drive him somewhere else. Whenever a coach is at the same school for 13 years, it only takes one dip for folks to turn on them. Just ask Mack Brown. Heck, ask Richt, who was firmly on the hot seat after the 2010 season and starting 0-2 in 2011, only to rally and make two consecutive SEC championship games. The bottom line is that Richt is a winner: 126-44 overall and 72-32 in the SEC, which is pretty rarified air. Next year, he'll start over with a new quarterback. If he were inclined to go, this wouldn't be the worst timing.

8. Dabo Swinney: If you're looking for the next Mack Brown, he's about as close as you can get. He's smart and personable with the media. Players love playing for him. Coaches love working for him. Oh, and he wins. Clemson is 31-8 in the last three seasons with two BCS bowl bids. Folks, that's not easy to do at Clemson, a program that wasn't a factor nationally at all for two decades before Swinney took over. Though Clemson has great fan support and better infrastructure than most of the ACC, it's a unique school/campus that simply will not appeal to a significant number of elite players. Swinney has convinced a lot of them to come to Clemson, and he'd recruit like a madman at Texas. He'd also be tremendous on the Longhorn Network.

9. Al Golden: He worked miracles at Temple and has done about as well at Miami as anyone could expect under the circumstances. With NCAA sanctions no longer a concern, don't be surprised if he is competing with Florida State at the top of the ACC in short order. Golden has had opportunities to leave Miami but has turned them down because he believes in the place and loves living in South Florida. But Texas isn't bad either.

Copyright 2014

Read the original story: Texas should consider these names, like Steve Spurrier

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