The Latest On Charlie Strong And Texas

I hate this, you hate this, people who have never heard of Card Chronicle hate this, but it's not going away anytime soon so we may as well discuss the most recent developments.

According to Chuck Carlton of The Dallas Morning News, the names most at play for the head coaching vacancy at Texas continue to be Baylor's Art Briles and Louisville's Charlie Strong. While a major Baylor donor told Carlton after last night's Fiesta Bowl that Briles "has indicated" that he would like to remain with the Bears, folks in Austin are understandably confident that he will at least be willing to listen to what they have to offer.

Unless things change dramatically at the 11th hour and the search goes certifiably crazy, then the names most in play are Louisville's Charlie Strong and Briles, according to industry sources familiar with the search.

Each was among four names that sources indicated were high on Texas' radar screen on Saturday.

Strong interviewed Tuesday with Texas athletic Steve Patterson, sources confirmed, and has become a creditable alternative after a positive meeting.

Briles will almost certainly be next on Patterson's to-do list. Sources describe Briles as happy and appreciative for the support at Baylor, which has invested more than $360 million in facilities. But he was also described as extremely intrigued by the possibilities and resources at a major state university like Texas in his home state.

James Franklin - whose Vanderbilt team plays in the BBVA Compass Bowl on Saturday - is the other big name that continues to be bandied about, although there's been nothing substantive reported on his interest in making a move.

I can't imagine we'll go too much longer without some sort of comment from either Strong or U of L. Until then, this is what we know.