At least he is still an option.
http://www.tsn.ca/cfl/story/?id=382155The Riders or Ticats would have to pay Austin a king's ransom to pry him away from Cornell.
If the Ticats hire Austin, Taman will be villified in Riderville.
That's why he's looking into it now.
Somebody tell Bob he can try to offset the cost by unloading a bunch of surplus “Austin 3:16” shirts at the Ticats store. 
the chances of Austin coming to Hamilton are none and none.
He may be looking for a contract in the neighborhood of $600,000 per season…wow
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That has not deterred Taman from seeking, and receiving, permission from the Cornell brass to approach Austin about possibly returning to the CFL. To date, Taman has been pursuing this matter with Austin’s agent, Gil Scott. The purpose of the discussions has been to ascertain whether Scott’s client has any interest in rejoining the Roughriders and, if so, what the expenditure might be.The suspicion here is that at least $600,000 per year would be required. Austin would have to supplant the Montreal Alouettes’ Marc Trestman, who is said to earn around $500,000, as the CFL’s highest-paid head coach.
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If this is the case, and it's a matter of money, then I'd expect to see Austin in Regina seeing as the Roughriders made a $6.6m profit in 2010 and the tabbies lose money.
Back to Austin (of course!) for a moment. Some readers have wondered whether it would be prudent to pay him upwards of $500,000 per annum, as would likely be required to lure him away from Cornell University and the bright lights of Ithaca, N.Y. The price tag would be steep, but remember that the Roughriders are also paying Greg Marshall $220,000 NOT to coach for each of the next two seasons. With that in mind, the notion of bestowing riches upon Austin does not seem so outlandish.Read more: [url=http://www.leaderpost.com/Robservations+Riders+could+make+three+deal/5838103/story.html#ixzz1g4ZPc2tn]http://www.leaderpost.com/Robservations ... z1g4ZPc2tn[/url]
Dave Naylor was on TSN radio just a couple of mornings ago talking about the Kent Austin situation.
He found it curious that in all the speculation about whether he will come back to the CFL, there hasn't been any comment from Austin's corner, whether it be from him or his agent. Naylor thought that if Austin wanted to put an end to the talk, all he would have to do is release a statement that he is staying put.
As far as the money being offered is concerned, Naylor stated that he would be paid more in the CFL that at the NCAA level he is currently working at. That would change, of course, if he were to make it to division 1 in the U.S. college ranks.
Naylor also feels that if Austin has any asperations about going higher in the division levels of the NCAA or to the NFL, he would not likely return to this league, as the possibility of him making it down south after coming back would be quite low based on the number of coaches who have tried.
For what it's worth.....
Here's how they're seeing this in Regina...from the Leader Post.....
"After two seasons at Ole Miss, Austin was again on the move. He has spent the past two years as the head football coach at Cornell University, and is apparently happy with life on-campus in Ithaca, N.Y.
That has not deterred Taman from seeking, and receiving, permission from the Cornell brass to approach Austin about possibly returning to the CFL. To date, Taman has been pursuing this matter with Austin's agent, Gil Scott. The purpose of the discussions has been to ascertain whether Scott's client has any interest in rejoining the Roughriders and, if so, what the expenditure might be.
The suspicion here is that at least $600,000 per year would be required. Austin would have to supplant the Montreal Alouettes' Marc Trestman, who is said to earn around $500,000, as the CFL's highest-paid head coach.
Such lavish spending would upset the CFL's salary structure, and likely the governors of the Roughriders' rivals. But, honestly, isn't it about time that the Roughriders wielded some financial clout?
The telethons are but a memory. The Roughriders announced a $6.6-million profit on their 2010 operations. Even though the past season was a mess, president-CEO Jim Hopson recently revealed that the 2011 revenues will be the second-highest in team history.
Due to the salary cap, there is only so much money that can be invested in players. Coaching salaries, however, are not regulated. So what is to deter the Roughriders from using an advantage that was unimaginable until then-GM Eric Tillman hired Austin?
The Roughriders have to pursue Austin - the best possible coaching candidate - from the standpoint of optics. More importantly, they are courting Austin because of his sparkling resume.
There is another factor at play - apparent interest by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The Roughriders can afford Austin. What they simply cannot afford is for Hamilton to swoop in and hire him. Such a development would be an embarrassment to the entire Roughriders organization.
If he opts to stay at Cornell, or accepts another coaching position in the United States, fair enough. But if he should sign with (gulp) Hamilton ...?
As much as the Roughriders would like to hit a home run by landing a marquee head coach, they must also guard against the worst-case scenario - Austin to Hamilton. Hence, the Roughriders have to see this process through to its culmination, whenever and whatever that may be, and ensure that any offer they tender is superior to that of Hamilton.
In the meantime, Taman continues to interview and evaluate other head-coaching candidates who emanate from the ranks of the CFL's assistants. On Thursday, for example, Calgary Stampeders offensive co-ordinator Dave Dickenson was in Regina to meet with Taman and assistant GM Jeremy O'Day. And who knows? Corey Chamblin, Richie Hall, Mike Benevides, Tim Burke, Mike O'Shea or either of the Dickenson brothers (Dave and Craig) may end up having an Austin-like effect on a Roughriders team that is desperately in need of rejuvenation.
But until Austin himself says "yay'' or "nay,'' Taman cannot consummate an agreement with anybody. He can pare down the number of candidates and emerge with a short list.
The shortest list, however, consists of Kent Austin. Period. End of paragraph.
Austin has not been an employee of the Roughriders for nearly four years, yet his influence is still immense. For the time being, he dictates the timing as Taman and his cohorts concentrate on addressing the head-coaching vacancy.
The Roughriders can only hope that Austin's control of their agenda extends to 2012 and well beyond.
They must think that Hamilton is a contender!!!!!
From Elmira, New York’s Star-Gazette
ITHACA -- Published reports in Canada say Kent Austin, who recently completed his second year as head coach of the Cornell University football team, is being pursued by the Canadian Football League's Saskatchewan Roughriders regarding their head coaching vacancy.[url=http://www.stargazette.com/article/20111209/SPORTS03/112090355/1119/]http://www.stargazette.com/article/2011 ... 0355/1119/[/url]Reports say the university has granted Saskatchewan permission to talk to Austin, who was the Roughriders’ head coach in 2007 and led the team to the league championship, known as the Grey Cup.
After one season, he left Saskatchewan to become the offensive coordinator at the University of Mississippi, his alma mater. He stayed there for two years before accepting the Cornell job in January 2010.
Attempts Friday to reach Austin and Cornell director of athletics Andy Noel were unsuccessful.
I will be surprised to see Austin come to Hamilton. He makes good money where he is, has potential to make more at a higher Division level in NCAA. If he returns to the CFL, it seems more likely Sask will want him badly and overpay him. I'm not convinced we can or should pay him (or anyone else) $600K to coach here.
The two best candidates for Sask are Austin and Dave Dickenson IMO. I don't think the Riders can go wrong either way. If Kent elects not to return to the CFL, then things have the potential to get very interesting if Sask and Hamilton target the same guy.
Word is that the Riders have lots of money to throw at Austin. I think he would make a good choice for this team. I don’t see Obie “tearing open the vault” to get him. So Riders may have this race to themselves if this becomes a dollars contest…
Word is that Austin Staying at Cornell
http://www.leaderpost.com/sports/index.html [url=http://www.leaderpost.com/sports/Kent+Austin+return+Riders+appears+unlikely/5848788/story.html]http://www.leaderpost.com/sports/Kent+A ... story.html[/url]Taman has also said they should have someone hired by next Friday.
I wonder who it will be??
Can we hear something like this from OB, or Mitchell?
Were still doing first round of interviews today with Tim Burke...
Austin proved himself in Sask. However, I remember his farewell press conference---I'm going home to Ole Miss and my dream job. I guess dream jobs don't last long because he barely had time to get new business cards printed before he moved on to Cornell. He's a football mercenary. A good one but a mercenary. Show him the money and he's probably yours but is it possible to build a team for the long term with Austin?
An Argo-Cat fan
"Introducing your new head coach"..................................................George Cortezzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz :rockin:
Maybe it's time to close this thread.
Austin is out of the loop now as far as the CFL is concerned.
Good points, Barney. I think Austin would be a good choice, but you have me wondering now with your comments about his nomadic nature.
Well of course you will go where the money is, who wouldn’t? And he would have to be offered a heck of a lot more to come to Canada to pay our taxes.
Look at the new coach of the BC Lions, Benevides, he was offered a head coaching job with the Argos a few years ago and turned it down. I'm sure he would have gotten a good pay raise with that promotion. So why didn't he go?
Not everyone's prime motivation in moving to another job is money. Some may stay because they like where they are, may be unsure about the new working conditions or may have found out that the politics and his new employers may not be the best to work under.
The money isn't always greener on the other side.