Courtesy Regina Leader Post:

Head coach Kent Austin can’t promise how long he will stay with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, but it was laughingly premature for anyone to believe he was leaving the CFL team after one season to join his alma mater, the University of Mississippi.

“Why would they be interested in me?” Austin said in a media conference wrapping up his team’s Grey Cup-winning season. “There are coaches with 20-30 years of NCAA experience who are way more qualified than I am. I think that talk was misplaced.

“Right after the Grey Cup I got questioned about that, I got blindsided by it. I just thought it was ridiculous. Now it’s over. Ole Miss has hired a great coach. That hire was unbelievable. To get Houston Nutt? Winning track record, he’s won, he’s an unbelievable motivator, an outstanding person, he knows how to recruit, he knows how to piece together a staff. It’s a great hire for Ole Miss.”

Ole Miss, where Austin remains the school’s second all-time passer, lured Nutt away from Arkansas, a Southeastern Conference rival where Nutt had been coaching for 10 seasons. Nutt replaces Ed Orgeron, who was fired last week by athletic director Pete Boone following a 3-9 season.

It might be far-fetched to think of Austin jumping to such a program, but who could have imagined that he would have successfully returned to Saskatchewan to lead the Roughriders to their first Grey Cup since he was their quarterback in 1989? So, for good measure, Austin was asked if Nutt had contacted him.

“The answer’s no, he hasn’t called,” Austin said with a smile.

Still, Austin can’t picture himself as a lifetime coach.

“I know coaches are hired to be fired. I get that,” Austin said. “I know there will be players who will be here a lot longer than I will be.

“Coaching’s very volatile, it’s very transient, it’s the nature of the beast and we understand that when we get involved in this profession. I love coaching and I love being a coach. Is it something I’ll do for the rest of my life? I don’t know. I could do four other things before I die. I can’t say long-term that I would do anything for the rest of my life. Me and my family don’t live our lives that way. We try our best to live by faith, and where that takes us, we’ll honour that.”

Austin’s immediate plans include spending more time with his wife Shelley and their three children; the family lives year-round in Regina and is going to take a winter vacation. Working around his family time, Austin will meet with general manager Eric Tillman to continue working towards upgrading the team for 2008.

Austin has already told his six assistant coaches he wants them all to return and would be disappointed if they left for similar jobs with other teams.

He would not discuss their contractual status, but at least one assistant — defensive co-ordinator Richie Hall — has one year remaining on a two-year pact. The other assistants are Ken Miller (offensive co-ordinator), Mike Gibson (assistant head coach/offensive line), Alex Smith (linebackers/special teams), Ron Estay (defensive line) and Paul LaPolice (receivers).

“I’ve been consistent in my feelings,” said Austin. “If it’s a move up, not a lateral move, I’ll be their biggest supporter.”