The sudden departure of Miami Hurricanes wide receivers coach Bryan McClendon to Georgia has created another opening on the staff. Miami currently only has defensive line coach Joe Salave’a, Alex Mirabal for the offensive line and Kevin Smith for running backs. Mirabal and Salave’a worked for Cristobal at Oregon.
Cristobal has kept information tight about any hirings for his staff. The hirings of Mirabal and Salave’a were not surprises. Cristobal and Mirabal have a relationship that goes back to Christopher Columbus High School in Miami. The relationship between Cristobal and Salave’a dates to 2017 at Oregon.
There are several coaches with connections to Cristobal or the Miami Hurricanes who could be hired to replace the short tenure of McClendon. Former Miami WRs Kevin Beard and Lamar Thomas have experience as coaches. Current Kentucky Quality Control coach Jovon Bouknight was the WRs coach at Oregon in 2019.
Beard played at Miami from 2001 through 2003. The on-field college coaching career began for Beard in 2015 as the passing game coordinator and WRs coach for Miami. After Al Golden was fired, Mark Richt did not retain Beard. Beard was a quality control assistant at Georgia in 2016 and WRs coach at Tennessee in 2017.
We just need the right hires like a Kevin beard, Lamar Thomas, Edward Gant @EdgantG5 as WR coaches and I'm pretty sure I'm missing a few more. Homerun hires don't guarantee championships, but the right hires with time does. Homerun hires only go to the highest bidders 🙌🏾🙌🏾
— Phillip Buchanon (@PhillipBuchanon) January 30, 2022
Since 2018 Bears has been the director of player personnel and assistant recruiting coordinator at Toledo. Cristobal could approach Beard to see if he wants to return to an on-field coaching role. Miami reportedly tried to hire Toledo head coach Jason Candle earlier this month by offering to nearly double his salary.
Thomas was a WRs coach at Hampton, Western Kentucky, Louisville and Kentucky from 2008 through 2018. In 2019, Thomas reunited with former Miami Hurricanes coach Dennis Erickson as the WRs coach of the Salt Lake City Stallions of the Alliance of American Football. Thomas has been out of coaching since 2019.
Bouknight spent the first 10 years of his coaching career at Utah State. After leaving the Aggies, Bouknight had a three-month stint at Texas Tech in 2019 before moving on to Oregon. Bouknight mentored two Oregon WRs who had at least 50 receptions and three with 30 in their 2019 Rose Bowl Championship season.
Bouknight was a prolific WR at Wyoming from 2002 through 2005. In four seasons with the Cowboys, Bouknight finished with 250 receptions, 3,626 receiving yards and 29 touchdowns and added 279 rushing yards and another TD.
Beard, Bouknight and Thomas are all potential fits for Miami, but there is no indication that Cristobal would consider any of them to succeed McClendon. Cristobal has all but three staff members to hire nearly two months after he left Oregon for Miami. The Hurricanes have a busy offseason in front of them.