By John Sleeper
Herald Writer
SAN DIEGO – Notre Dame may have finally gotten the message. Maybe.
University of Washington football coach Rick Neuheisel said he received no telephone calls from Notre Dame Tuesday about its vacant head-coaching position.
ESPN.com reported Sunday that Neuheisel headed the school’s short list of candidates and that Notre Dame prepared to tender a contract offer of $2.5 million a year, roughly double Neuheisel’s present salary.
“It’s flattering to be considered to be a candidate,” Neuheisel said after Tuesday night’s practice. “But I’m not a candidate. I’m not going to participate in that.”
Neuheisel has told his team that he would not leave his current job to go to Notre Dame. He also has been busy on a cell phone, putting out fires with recruits wanting to know whether he will remain at Washington.
In fact, the timing of the report couldn’t have come at a worse time. Not only must Neuheisel prepare his team to face No. 9 Texas, but this also is getting down to crunch time in the recruiting season. The signing date is Feb. 6.
“I’ve learned in this business that you don’t have any control over the timing of things,” he said. “I would like to have left Colorado at a different time. I didn’t necessarily like that time if I were to make a determination to leave. Rather than get upset about it, I just think it’s part of what we do.”
The report said Notre Dame might well offer Neuheisel the job this week. Neuheisel said Tuesday that no offer has come his way.
Benson won’t start: Texas star tailback Cedric Benson will not start in Friday’s Holiday Bowl against Washington, but may play, Longhorns coach Mack Brown said.
Benson, a true freshman who ran for 1,053 yards this season, suffered a pinched nerve in his neck in the Big 12 Championship game against Colorado and has not taken part in contact drills. Junior Victor Ike, who averages 30.7 yards per attempt as the Longhorns’ kick returner, will start in Benson’s place.
Ike came out of spring practices with the starting tailback job, but lost it when it was obvious that Benson was something special. The Holiday Bowl has been good to Ike. He returned a kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown last year against Oregon in Texas’ 35-31 defeat.
That was Texas’ first TD off a kickoff return since Johnny “Lam” Jones did so against SMU on Oct. 28, 1978 – a 265-game span.
Short routes: Washington has gone 2-3 on the road this season. Its two victories came by a combined five points. The three losses came by a combined score of 149-44. The Huskies were 6-0 at home for the second straight season … Texas’ defense has held eight of its past nine opponents to fewer than 300 yards of offense. The Longhorns lead the nation in total defense at just 236.2 yards a game. But perhaps the most impressive number is this: Texas has prevented its opponents from picking up a first down in 44 percent of their drives. The Longhorns forced North Carolina into 10 three-and-out possessions in the Tar Heels’ 19 possessions … Washington and Texas will take part in the Navy/Marine Corps Luncheon today aboard the USS Nimitz.
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