Miami Hurricanes Should Look Forward, Not Backwards

44 is not 64.

When Butch Davis took the Miami Hurricanes job back in January 1995, he was 43 years old and coming off of back-to-back Super Bowl victories as the defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys.

It was a different time and a different era.

With the termination of Al Golden, the job at "The U" has come open again. There has been...a rumbling? A groundswell? A casual mention? The correct words fail.

Anyway, let's just say that there has been mention of bringing back Butch Davis from his cable television exile, and 15 years away from South Florida, to coach Miami again.

Which begs this question: Why is he qualified?

His age next season would be 64. That doesn't necessarily disqualify him from the job (and it probably shouldn't), but the fact that he hasn't coached a game in five years at this point might be an issue.

While he was not implicated in the academic scandal that has affected the University of North Carolina, there might also be some residual blowback for that.

Oh, and there was the fact that he already left Miami for another job once before as head coach. This might be an area where his age works in his favor, since the NFL would be reluctant to hire a head coach in their 60s at this time (and Davis probably wouldn't want to leave for that kind of grind, either).

Apparently Davis is willing to take the job, or at least the call. Which is understandable.

Care needs to be taken about trying to reclaim past glory, though.

Sure, it worked to some extent for Kansas State, as they brought Bill Snyder back after the Ron Prince debacle.

But look at what has happened at USC as a counterpoint.

(Yes, yes. Extenuating circumstances/NCAA sanctions made a difference there. To some extent.)

There is no right answer, obviously; hopefully by getting a head start on the process, Miami can figure out exactly what they need and who they need.

I just don't know if hiring a retread coach who has been out of the game for this long is the best outcome.