The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the process was being kept confidential and had not been completed. Texas has been looking to replace Mack Brown, who stepped down in December after 16 seasons with the Longhorns.

Strong is in his fourth year at Louisville and coming off his second straight double-digit victory season. He took over a program coming off three straight non-winning seasons and has gone 37-15.

The 53-year-old Strong was a longtime defensive coordinator in the Southeastern Conference before getting a chance to be head coach. He took Louisville to the BCS last season and finished 12-1 this year with start quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.

New Texas athletic director Steve Patterson, hired in November to replace longtime AD DeLoss Dodds, interviewed Strong this week. Details of a contract offer to Strong were not immediately available. Brown's contract paid him more than $5 million per season.

Earlier Friday, two other coaches Texas reportedly had interest in — Baylor's Art Briles and UCLA's Jim Mora — said publicly they were staying in their current jobs.

Brown stepped down after four straight seasons that failed to live up to expectations, including this season's 8-5 record.

Strong had two stints as an assistant at Florida, first under Steve Spurrier and then as defensive coordinator for Urban Meyer's two national championship teams. In 2010, Louisville hired him to take over the program and he quickly righted the Cardinals, who are moving into the Atlantic Coast Conference next season.

Strong would be Texas' first black head football coach and he inherits a program aching to return to its place among the nation's elite programs.

Brown's Longhorns won the 2005 season national championship and returned to the national championship game after the 2009 season. But the Longhorns fell to 5-7 in 2010 and have lost at least four games each of the last three seasons.

That dropoff, including an 18-17 mark in the Big 12 over the last four seasons, frustrated Texas fans, who demand much more from the wealthiest athletic program in the country that sits in the middle of the most fertile high school recruiting grounds in the country.

Texas also has its Longhorn Network partnership with the ESPN, a 24-hour channel dedicated to Texas athletics, a deal that pays the school at least $300 million over 20 years.


GOLDEN OFFERED PENN STATE JOB


Miami coach Al Golden has been offered the Penn State position and is expected to accept it, CaneSport.com reported Friday.

Golden graduated from Penn State and played tight end there from 1987-1991. He was considered a strong candidate to replace Joe Paterno when Paterno retired prior to the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal.

Golden is 22-15 in three seasons at Miami. The Hurricanes did not participate in bowl games in 2011 and 2012 because of a self-imposed bowl ban as an NCAA investigation was ongoing. This season, Miami finished 9-4 and lost to Louisville in the Russell Athletic Bowl.

Prior to arriving in Miami, Golden turned around a bad Temple program. His first team in 2006 went 1-11. But his final two seasons, the Owls were 9-4 and 8-4 — the Owls had suffered through 15 consecutive losing seasons before he arrived in 2006. He was 27-34 overall at Temple in five seasons.


BROWNS INTERESTED IN STOOPS?


Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops is the latest college coach to be linked to Cleveland's head coaching vacancy.

Just hours after his Sooners stunned Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, Stoops, a Youngstown, Ohio native, didn't rule out the possibility of jumping to the NFL. On Dan Patrick's national radio show, Stoops said he's not looking to pursue a pro job but "you never know down the road."

Later, Stoops would not discuss rumors tying him to the Browns' job with Oklahoma writers and again said "you never know" when pressed on the subject.

The Browns fired Rob Chudzinski following one season. The team has interviewed candidates and is reportedly interested in speaking with Auburn coach Gus Malzahn.

Last year, Browns owner Jimmy Kelly targeted Chip Kelly to be Cleveland's coach, but the former Oregon coach decided to take Philadelphia's job.


JACKETS QB TRANSFERRING


Georgia Tech was hoping that Vad Lee would be its starting quarterback for three years.

Instead, Lee announced Friday that he plans to transfer to another school following a 7-6 season that ended with a 25-17 loss to Mississippi earlier this week at the Music City Bowl.

Georgia Tech released statements Friday from Lee and coach Paul Johnson saying they appreciated the chance to work with each other, but the team's spread offense was inconsistent during much of the season.

Johnson often publicly criticized Lee for making wrong reads and his teammates for missing blocks and failing to create space on the perimeter in the coach's signature scheme.

Despite arriving for the bowl game in Nashville, Tenn., with the nation's No. 4 rushing offense, the offense sputtered after a touchdown on its opening drive, and the Jackets trailed 23-7 early in the third quarter.

Ole Miss finished with 477 total yards. Georgia Tech finished with 298, its ground attack averaging just 3.1 yards on 49 attempts.

"We never got in sync on offense at all, never really got into any kind of rhythm," Johnson said. "It was just kind of haphazard. We hit some plays here and there, but nothing to gain with any consistency."

Losing to Ole Miss was painful for Lee, but the disappointment of blowing a 20-point lead to Georgia five weeks ago hurt even worse.

He was particularly despondent that the Jackets' fifth-year seniors went 0-5 against the hated Bulldogs. Georgia Tech has lost 12 of its last 13 to Georgia, including seven straight at Bobby Dodd Stadium.

"I can imagine how (the seniors) feel right now not being able to beat Georgia," Lee said. "That game matters a lot here and it was special. The game was special with a great atmosphere and we really wanted to win."

Contributors: Ken Bradley, The Associated Press

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