Willingham out; is Kiffin In?

The sound we've been waiting for in the Pacific Northwest was finally heard on Monday. That thud was the University of Washington dropping the axe, cutting ties with Coach Ty Willingham at the end of the season. It was inevitable, and certainly won't create ripples of "fair or not" discussions across the nation, as the firing of Tommy Bowden did in Clemson. Going into the season, Willingham already knew he needed to win games to save his job, and he responded with the Huskies sitting at 0-7, the only winless BCS conference program in America.

UW now has several months to find a replacement, though the recruiting clock is ticking. And that replacement may be closer than we think, with Lane Kiffin already being mentioned, once his unemployment became official. The hiring of Kiffin would add the fourth former NFL coach to lead a program in the existing Pac 10, joining Pete Carroll, Mike Riley, and Dennis Erickson. The addition of Kiffin would add a face for recruiting, as his name and face are already well known in the Southern California hotbed, as well as various parts of the nation.

I think it would be a good fit in Seattle, but they'll go through their process. I can't say with any certainty who will be leading the program next year. But now I can say, definitely, that Willingham will not.