London: No interest in Penn State

by Jerry Ratcliffe on November 11th, 2011

Virginia football coach Mike London was hot under the collar Friday night about a published report that linked him to Penn State’s coaching vacancy.

A report in The Washington Post stated that a member of Penn State’s Board of Trustees had reached out to gauge London’s interest in succeeding Joe Paterno on Wednesday, before the board announced the firing of the longtime coach. The report added that London declined the overture.

London, reached at the Omni Hotel in Charlottesville, where the Cavaliers stay on Friday nights before home games, the Virginia head coach was adamant that he had not been contacted by anyone about the Penn State job.

“No one has contacted me directly or indirectly or any other kind of ‘ly,‘“ London said. “No one has talked to my agent. I don’t know where any of this is coming from.“

Normally a mild mannered guy, London was livid about the report because of the ripples it sent through his committed recruiting class, which is considered one of the better crops of prospects in the country for the second year in a row.

“Now, [the report] is a distraction with my recruits. I’ve got recruits calling me up asking, ‘What’s the deal?‘ or if it’s true,“ London said. “Of course it’s not true. The only thing I’m trying to do is win a football game. The only thing I’m thinking about is 3 o’clock tomorrow.“

London’s Cavaliers host ACC Coastal Division rival Duke on Saturday as UVa attempts to break a three-year losing streak to the Blue Devils and remain alive in a quest to win the division race.

“Is having my name mentioned with Penn State flattering? Yes, it’s flattering, but it’s not something I would want to get involved in,“ London said. “I have respect for that university but my roots are not in Happy Valley. My roots are here. My roots are in Virginia, in the Hampton Roads area where my parents live and the area where my wife is from. I love being at UVa. I love Charlottesville and so does my wife and my kids.

“I want to coach here as long as I can,“ London said.

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