Texas A&M prepared to pursue Jimbo Fisher
USA Today
Texas A&M is expected to inquire about the interest level of Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher once its separation from current coach Kevin Sumlin is official at the end of the season, according to two people familiar with the situation.
Though Fisher has never given serious consideration to leaving Florida State previously, rebuffing interest from LSU the last two years, one person close to Fisher pointed to his longstanding relationship with Texas A&M athletics director Scott Woodward and the current disappointing season at Florida State as reasons why Texas A&M’s pursuit might be more realistic.
Last week, when Fisher was asked about Florida State’s rivalry with Clemson, he added fuel to the fire with a comment that seemed to indicate he believes Clemson, with its new $55 million football facility, has surpassed Florida State in its financial commitment to winning national titles.
“I think their rise has come from their commitment to football,” Fisher said. “They’ve been committed but their administration has done a tremendous job of spending and doing and building. Not just building, but all the things behind the scenes.”
Asked what commitments he’d like to see from Florida State, Fisher responded: “Those things are a major, major deal. Unfortunately, in this business, when you get into the facilities business, you’re never out of it. You’re never out of development. Your company can never quit growing. Whether it’s that or behind the scenes things, support staff, all that can never happen. It can never go away. If it does, people fly by you like crazy. And there’s numerous examples across this country. If you don’t understand that, you’re missing the boat.”
Those comments were not well-received among FSU fans and administrators, particularly given the contract extension Fisher received last December and the multimillion-dollar facility upgrades the school has made under his watch.
Texas A&M has been on the cutting edge of the facility wars, opening a new $20 million operations complex in 2014 and a $485 million stadium renovation.
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