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Oregon State Football: Rick Neuheisel ponders return to coaching

By Dana Becker

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 07: Thomas Tyner #4 of the Oregon State Beavers takes a hand off from Darell Garretson #10 of the Oregon State Beavers for a short gain in the first half of the game against the USC Trojans at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on October 7, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 07: Thomas Tyner #4 of the Oregon State Beavers takes a hand off from Darell Garretson #10 of the Oregon State Beavers for a short gain in the first half of the game against the USC Trojans at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on October 7, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) /
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Former UCLA, Colorado and Washington head coach Rick Neuheisel has interest in the Oregon State football job if the program has interest in him.

Now, Neuheisel isn’t going out and searching to become the next head coach of the Beavers, as he told ESPN, but if the school sought him out, he wouldn’t say “not interested.”

“I’m not going to pursue it,” Neuheisel said. “If they reached out to me and thought I might be a fit, I would absolutely entertain a conversation. But those sort of searches, they have guys in mind. They have ideas to where they’re going. I’ve made up my mind that if someone thinks I’m the right fit for a particular situation, I would absolutely entertain and listen to it.”

Currently, Neuheisel is an analyst with CBS Sports and SiriusXM radio. The 56-year-old is an alum of UCLA, winning a Pac-10 title for the school as head coach in 2010. After stops at Colorado and Washington, he spent two seasons in the high school ranks before heading to the NFL as a quarterback coach and offensive coordinator with the Baltimore Ravens.

“I think the Oregon State job is a good job,” he said. “With the right guy in that position, given where the program sits currently, I think it can be kick-started rather quickly.”

In 2008, Neuheisel was hired by UCLA, leading the school until 2011. Overall, he holds a coaching record of 87-59 with a 5-3 mark in bowl games. During his playing days, he was the Rose Bowl MVP in 1984.

Neuheisel won 10 or more games three times in his career, including twice with Colorado and once more with Washington when he led them to an 11-1 record and a win in the Rose Bowl.

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Gary Andersen led Oregon State earlier this year as head coach. One of the top candidates to fill the void is former Beaver quarterback Jonathan Smith, who is currently the offensive coordinator at Washington, along with interim coach Cory Hall.

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