Mackovic Takes Arizona Job

After three years as an television football analyst, John Mackovic decided he wasn’t through with coaching after all.

When Arizona called about the opening created by the resignation of his good friend Dick Tomey, Mackovic jumped at it. “The TV gig was nice,” Mackovic said, “but it’s not coaching.”

Mackovic, 57, on Monday became head coach at the school where he was a offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach from 1973-76. His nomadic career has included head coaching jobs with Wake Forest from 1978-80, the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs from 1983-86, Illinois from 1988-91 and Texas from 1992-97.

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Three weeks after Georgia Athletic Director Vince Dooley gave him a vote of confidence, Coach Jim Donnan was fired.

Donnan went 5-6 in his first year at Georgia, but he put together four consecutive winning seasons for an overall mark of 39-19. The Bulldogs, however, had a combined record of 6-14 against their biggest rivals--Georgia Tech, Auburn, Tennessee and Florida.

The No. 24 Bulldogs (7-4) lost three of their last four regular-season games for the second year in a row, settling for a spot in the Oahu Bowl.

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Three quarterbacks--Drew Brees of Purdue, Josh Heupel of Oklahoma and Chris Weinke of Florida State--and running back LaDainian Tomlinson of Texas Christian were announced as finalists for the Heisman Trophy. . . . Hoping to complete their search for a new coach by the end of the week, Brigham Young officials asked Chicago Bear offensive coordinator Gary Crowton to meet with them Wednesday. . . . San Jose State Coach Dave Baldwin has turned down a three-year contract extension offer and won’t be returning next season. His departure ends a stormy tenure during which he openly clashed with Athletic Director Chuck Bell, who took over the department months after Baldwin was hired. . . . Notre Dame assistant Urban Meyer was hired as the coach at Bowling Green.