BetOnline has odds on Freeze’s replacement

The headline on the cover of last Friday’s Oxford Eagle said it all regarding the end of Hugh Freeze’s tumultuous tenure at Ole Miss.

Published on Monday, 7/24/17, at 3:25 p.m. Eastern.

Click here for my react column on Freeze’s forced resignation filed over at VegasInsider.com.

Offshore betting shop BetOnline.ag has posted proposition bets on the candidates to replace Hugh Freeze at Ole Miss. Many of them seem like realistic possibilities, but how on earth Derek Dooley is listed with the second-shortest odds is beyond me.

Even though harsh NCAA sanctions are looming, the next coach for the Rebels will have several things going for him. First, no agent is going to allow his coach to take this gig without a long-term contract that gives him time to overcome the looming punishment and eventually have success. Also, with Ole Miss off the hook on paying Freeze a penny of the $4.7 million annual contract he was due over the next several years, it has plenty of cash to entice a new coach. And finally, this is still an SEC job and each and every one of those is coveted by coaches across the country.

Here are the numbers below…

Chad Morris (SMU), +400 ‘chalk’ (risk $100 to win $400)
Derek Dooley (Cowboys asst.) +500
Les Miles (free agent) +500
Matt Luke (Ole Miss interim HC) +500
Blake Anderson (Arkansas St.) +800
Mike Norvell (Memphis) 10/1
Brent Venables (Clemson DC) 12/1
Scott Frost (UCF) 14/1
Chip Kelly (free agent) 14/1
Lane Kiffin (FAU) 16/1
Mike MacIntyre (Colorado) 16/1
Charlie Strong (USF) 16/1
Neal Brown (Troy) 16/1
Willie Fritz (Tulane) 20/1
Bryan Harsin (Boise St.) 20/1
Bobby Petrino (Louisville) 25/1

There are many moments that can be pointed out in detailing the demise of Hugh Freeze, but this picture captures how close he had the Rebels to winning an SEC West title. But Arkansas TE Hunter Henry threw a desperation lateral before going down on this play and moments later, Alex Collins had a first down on this 4th-and-25 play.

Analysis:

Chip Kelly will have too many options to consider a place with crippling sanctions looming. Charlie Strong already made a “fit” mistake in leaving Louisville for Texas. I don’t see him pulling a one-and-done act at USF for a job with so many question marks. With multiple controversies in their respective pasts, Kelly (got a 2-year show-cause from NCAA as he left Oregon) and Bobby Petrino come with too much baggage, anyway. Lane Kiffin can sort of fit in that category as well. The remaining names (minus Dooley because I can’t fathom Ole Miss wanting him) are all probably realistic options. My favorites of the bunch are Venables, Norvell, Brown and MacIntyre. With apologies to Bud Foster at Va. Tech, Venables is the best DC in college football right now. Norvell and Brown run dynamic offenses, while MacIntyre has proven his abilities with two outstanding rebuild jobs at San Jose St. and Colorado.

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