Cowboys Coaching Carousel: Does The Silence On OU's Lincoln Riley Speak Loudly?
FRISCO - Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley just lost prized recruit Brock Vandagiff, the top QB in the recruiting class of 2021, who is de-committing from the Sooners ... surely in part because of speculation that Riley himself may be "de-committing'' from the Sooners.
That's the only real buzz regarding Riley's employment future, though we must point out: The silence on Riley's NFL prospects with the Dallas Cowboys and the rest, is deafening.
Think about it: Top NFL assistants like Greg Roman, Eric Bieniemy, Josh McDaniels, Joe Judge, Mike LaFleur and Dallas' own Kris Richard are already securing interviews with NFL teams ... but not yet with the Cowboys.
And top NCAA coaches like Riley's contemporary Matt Rhule of Baylor are doing the same ... but not yet with the Cowboys.
Even out-of-work guys like Mike McCarthy and Urban Meyer are being connected to jobs ... but outside of the game of footsie the Cowboys have absolutely played with Meyer ... silence in Dallas.
Why is there no similar buzz for Lincoln Riley? Why does it seem like Vandagiff (or his family/advisors) know something here?
Last month, Vandagiff, who plays high school football in Georgia, told Sports Illustrated that he would not go to Oklahoma unless Riley was his coach.
“We’d have to see who they hire, but (Georgia coach Kirby Smart) and (Florida coach) Dan Mullen know that they are Nos. 2 and 3 back-to-back if Lincoln Riley leaves. Because that’s probably why I’m going there, Lincoln Riley himself,” he said. “You can be a product of the system there and be very successful. But when Kirby came to Prince Avenue last month I told him, ‘Look, if Lincoln Riley leaves, I’ll probably commit to Georgia the next week.’ ”
And suddenly, Vandagiff is no longer a Sooner.
We are obviously working to assembly a jigsaw puzzle here. Why does it seem like the Jones family, with its "Long Goodbye'' treatment of still-standing coach Jason Garrett, seem unhurried? Why isn't the OU coach scheduling NFL interviews along with the rest of the pack? Just how friendly is Riley with COO Stephen Jones? (Answer: friendly enough.) Why did Vandagiff experience a change of heart?
This is neither a "scoop'' nor a "prediction.'' It's just an observation: The Cowboys don't have to be in a hurry to do anything with Garrett, to interview anybody at all ... and Riley doesn't have to do anything, either, including hurrying to conduct interviews ... if both parties already know what a high-school kid in Georgia thinks he knows.
