Sumlin was an assistant at Minnesota in the 1990s, working for Jim Wacker and later Glen Mason.  After that he was Bob Stoops’ offensive coordinator at Oklahoma.  In three plus seasons at Houston his teams have made a national reputation for scoring points, quickly and often while compiling a 23-13 record. The Cougars rank 10^th in the country in points per game, 40.67.  Rumors persist that Sumlin is of interest to Minnesota officials.

We see a red flag with Sumlin’s work, though.  Defense was been an ongoing problem during his two-plus seasons at Houston.  The Cougars now rank 82^nd in the country in scoring defense, giving up 29.33 points per game.

Despite having almost three years to get the defense stout, despite playing in a mediocre conference, and despite being located in a wonderful recruiting area, the Cougars’ defensive performances are unsettling.  The 5-4 Cougars of 2010 have given up 30 points or more in four games.  In 2009 Houston yielded 35 points or more in eight of 13 games.  During 2008 the Cougars gave up 35 or more five times.

An intriguing potential candidate for the Gophers job is Ken Niumatalolo, the 45-year-old Navy coach with a 24-13 record.  He’s of Polynesian descent and in his third season as head coach of the Midshipmen.  His record this season is 6-3 including a second straight win over Notre Dame.

Niumatalolo didn’t resurrect an awful Navy program but he’s kept it winning.  He was an assistant on coach Paul Johnson’s staff before Johnson left for Georgia Tech.  Since then Niumatalolo has kept the Navy offense ground oriented running the triple-option.  That’s an unorthodox offense which could be troublesome for Gophers opponents if Niumatalolo used it here.

Navy is not an easy place to win, and neither is Minnesota.  A coach who has proven he can win without the best of resources needs to be a must in the Gophers’ hiring criteria.

What University officials are hoping for is the largest pool of qualified candidates possible, black, brown or white.  Right now they pretty much have the hiring landscape to themselves but jobs might open up at attractive programs like Arizona State, Georgia, Michigan, Penn State, Texas A&M and Washington State.

The Gophers’ monopoly on their coaching opening won’t continue.  Colorado fired coach Dan Hawkins earlier this week.

What’s the difference between 2-6 and 3-5?  Maybe somebody’s job, or even career.

Brad Childress will coach the Vikings next Sunday in Chicago.  There was opinion in the press box and on the street yesterday afternoon that Childress would lose his job if the Vikings couldn’t beat 3-4 Arizona at Mall of America Field.  That feeling was growing in the fourth quarter when the Vikings trailed Arizona 24-10 before a dramatic comeback led by 41-year-old quarterback Brett Favre and a resurgent defense that produced a 27-24 overtime victory.

A Vikings assistant was overhead in the locker room telling a well-wisher this: “We needed that one, buddy, for a lot of reasons.”

In the court of public opinion Childress is among the most unpopular coaches ever to lead a team in this town.  From the beginning, back in 2006, his outspoken confidence met with disapproval by some fans and media.  A 6-10 record that year didn’t help.  Since then the season records have been 8-8, 10-6 and 12-4, but there’s been minimal affection directed by fans toward Childress who have various rants including game management.

Last season’s NFC championship loss to New Orleans will long be remembered for the Vikings blunder of having 12 men on the field.  That closed a storybook season with bitter feelings for some observers.  Expectations this August were for another triumphant season but problems, some of them having nothing to do with Childress, have made for an ugly start to a 16-game schedule now half over.

Criticism has intensified in recent days leading up to yesterday’s game.  It resulted from not only the record and two-game losing streak but because of supposed conflict between players and Childress.  Alleged incidents with the now-departed Randy Moss, and also wide receiver Percy Harvin and defensive tackle Pat Williams, have been reported.

Those run-ins had observers wondering if Childress was losing his team, but the determined fourth quarter effort yesterday seemed to answer that question positively.  Still, there’s a solid argument to be made that Childress’ job security is week-to-week.

Ultimately keeping Childress is ownership’s decision.  A factor that may weigh in the decision is whether Childress told owners Zygi and Mark Wilf last week about his intent to get rid of Moss before Childress did so.  If so, that’s to his credit and the explanation had to help ease the feeling of giving up on a player only a few weeks after he was acquired for a 2011 third round draft choice.  If not, that could be a body blow to the trust relationship between the coach and team owners.

The Wilfs are more than passionate football fans; they’re sophisticated business people.  Sometime during this season or at the end they will make a business decision on what they think is best for the Vikings.  They approved the hiring of Childress and thought so highly of his work a year ago that he was given a five-year contract extension.

So the Wilfs have invested themselves emotionally and financially in their coach. But the opinion of critical fans and media counts for plenty.  Outside the stadium yesterday there were signs and chants calling for Childress to be fired.  During the game, the same chants were heard and the Vikings were loudly booed.  And on Twitter you can get in on the campaign: @FireChilly and @FireChildress.

An unpopular coach and losing team is not an asset for another campaign: the drive for legislative approval and public funding of a new stadium.  That stadium will increase the value of the Vikings franchise and sooner or later financially benefit the owners.

The Wilfs hired Childress, extended his contract, and opened their wallets to aggressively spend on player personnel.  They have expectations short and long term. They also understand perceptions, and in the court of public opinion the Childress supporters are a silent and slim minority.

How could Childress possibly turn around the public negativity?  Take his team to the Super Bowl.  Anything less than that will be his fault, even when it isn’t.

An almost miracle win yesterday makes the Super Bowl still a slight possibility.  But the only game that counts for Childress now is next week in Chicago where a lot fewer fans will be calling for his head.