Sean Payton has emerged as a "candidate" for the UM job according to rivals mods

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A few notes on other candidates for the Michigan head coaching job should it open, as expected, and San Francisco head coach Jim Harbaugh not take it (and to be clear, he'll have the right of first refusal, and - again - despite all the talk of trades to the New York Jets, Oakland Raiders, etc., U-M is a major player here). We've heard a number of names mentioned, but have yet to lend credence to many of them. We've said John Harbaugh wouldn't leave Baltimore and the NFL for Michigan, and that hasn't changed. We've said Les Miles was a long shot to be on the list (his "love Michigan, Geaux Blue, Beat Ohio" tweet was something he does every year), and that hasn't changed, either. Georgia's Mark Richt is an interesting one. Some believe the Bulldogs might be primed to make a change, and there are prominent boosters who would like to see it. The problem: they've been doing the same thing for a few years. A recent loss to Georgia Tech after an ill-advised squib kick has the heat higher than ever, but Richt isn't going anywhere unless they force him out. He's near all of his family, for one. From what we're hearing, he's not likely to be removed this year. Former Wisconsin and current Arkansas coach Bret Bielema - we've heard this one a number of times now, but nothing from what we believe to be a foolproof source (our sources on Harbaugh, for example, we trust implicitly). Michigan is looking for an A.D. too, though, and former U-M associate athletic director and current Arkansas A.D. Jeff Long is highly regarded in Ann Arbor. We know all the stories about Bielema, but … you never know. Colorado State's Jim McElwain has revived the program and seems ready for the next step. He'll be in demand, though (Nebraska and Florida are already rumored to have reached out), and he has a $7.5 million buyout. He's one to watch. And for the pipe dreamers, how about New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton? Here's one from the "hmmm" file - while working the Michigan - Indiana game last year, one of our friends, a coach at an Ann Arbor area school, was working concessions to raise money for his program when Payton - in his Michigan hat - and two of his children came up and ordered a hot dog. He's tight with former U-M assistant Scot Loeffler and, for whatever reason, loves the Wolverines.

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