Hey All,
It's time to get this party started for 2016. Let's start with a ride on the old Coaching Carousel. We really miss you, Tom Kelly.
Please note: the hiring of Clay Helton at USC is not in this article because almost everyone reading this article pretty much knows the story of how Helton got the USC job.
Ball State
Out: Pete Lembo
In: Mike Neu
Pete Lembo's departure from the Alma Mater of David Letterman was a shocker in MAC circles. Lembo had built the Cardinals into a steady contender in the league. The team did dip in recent seasons sporting an uncharacteristic 3-9 record in 2015. Even with that, Lembo wasn't on any real hot seat. Lembo left all on his own when offered the Assistant HC job at Maryland for their new HC D.J. Durkin. In his place, the Cardinals went with offensive minded Mike Neu. Neu is not new to Ball State. Neu quarterbacked the Cardinals from 1990-93. He started 38 of 41 games as QB and earned MAC Offensive Player of the Year Honors in 1993. Neu's coaching career experience comes mainly from arena football. He did serve as the QB coach for Tulane in 2012-3013 then was hired in the same role for the New Orleans Saints for the 2014 and 2015 seasons. The big knock on Neu is that he only has those two years at Tulane for college coaching experience. That's a level of inexperience that has many doubting that he can be successful at BSU.
Bowling Green
Out: Dino Babers
In: Mike Jinks
Dino Babers did a good job of building the Bowling Green program up then he took the Syracuse job and left a talented team for new HC Mike Jinks. The hiring of Jinks did not impress many folks in MAC country. That might be because Jinks has spent his entire coaching career in the state of Texas. Jinks' entry into the coaching ranks is pretty good story. After playing QB as Angelo State, he was a waiter in a San Angelo, Texas restaurant. He was serving a party of coaches from Ellison High School and they offered him the job of QB coach. After securing a loan from his old college coach, Jinks earned his teaching certification and took the job. He worked his way up to being the OC at such Texas powers as Robert E. Lee and Galena Park high school. In 2006 he became the HC at Steel High in Cibolo, Texas. Seven years later he left Steel High with a 76-18 record and a Texas 5A Divison II state championship. His next gig was as the RB and AHC at Texas Tech. Despite his lack of experience as a HC in the college game, Jinks just may the toughness to stick around at Bowling Green for awhile.
BYU
Out: Bronco Mendenhall
In: Kalani Sitake
When Bronco Mendenhall left BYU for Virginia last season the obvious replacement for Mendenhall was believed to be Navy HC Ken Niumatalolo. After all Niumatalolo is an LDS member and has a son on the BYU squad. However, Niumatalolo decided to stay at Navy. BYU AD Tom Holmoe then hired the first Tongan HC in FBS history. Kalani Sitake may have been the DC at Oregon State last season, but Sitake is a familiar name in the state of Utah. He played FB at BYU in 1994 and from 1997-2000. He then was a GA at BYU in 2002 which was followed by a stint as an assistant for Southern Utah in 2003-04 before spending from 2005-14 on Kyle Whittingham's staff at Utah. The positives of this hire for the Cougars is Sitake's understanding of the BYU culture and his ability to recruit Polynesian players to Provo. The big knock on him is that he has never been a HC on any level. The opinion of the BYU beat writers is that Sitake will be good for the program and that he is the guy that Holmoe really wanted.
Trivia: Tom Holmoe was the last HC at Cal before Jeff Tedford took over back in 2002.
East Carolina
Out: Ruffin McNeill
In: Scottie Montgomery
Some smaller schools are lucky enough to get a HC that just wants to coach forever at that institution. Ruffin McNeill seemed to be that guy at ECU. He played at ECU from 1976-1979 and started his coaching career in 1980. His career took him to nine different schools over 30 years before landing the HC job at his alma mater. McNeil took a down program and turned it around. The high point of his turnaround was the 2013 season where the Pirates went 10-3 with a win over Ohio U in the Beef o'Brady's Bowl. In 2015, the Pirates finished at 5-7 and Ruffin was let go. The firing was a big surprise to the ECU faithful and media. It was reported that it wasn't the 2015 record that got Ruffin let go, it was his refusal to dismiss some assistants that got him canned. McNeill did not stay unemployed for long. He landed the Assistant HC/LB job at Virginia. After this messy firing, ECU looked a couple hours away across North Carolina to find their next coach. Scottie Montgomery comes from Duke where he was the OC the last two seasons. Montgomery is one of those up and coming young coaches who in his two years with the Blue Devils had the offense in top tier of every category in ACC play. At 37, he is one of the youngest HC's in the country. He also has no HC experience at any level. This is one of this high risk/high reward hires for the Pirates.
Georgia
Out: Mark Richt
In: Kirby Smart
Mark Richt was let go because he couldn't win the big games at Georgia. This means that the man coming into this job better do so immediately if not sooner. This daunting task falls to Kirby Smart who has been Nick Saban's DC the last nine years at Alabama. This job is a homecoming for Smart who was a four year letterman and was an All-SEC selection at DB for the Bulldogs playing in the same defensive backfield with Champ Bailey back in 1998. Smart has a wealth of experience in the SEC but has never been a HC. Hiring Smart is a good move for the Bulldogs. One has to wonder if he will be given time to succeed. If not, Georgia's impatience could have them falling into a tailspin like Nebraska has been in since they fired Frank Solich back in 2003.
Georgia Southern
Out: Willie Fritz
In: Tyson Summers
Under Willie Fritz, Georgia Southern made maybe the best transition to the FBS from the FCS than any program ever has. The Eagles let everyone know they could play on the FBS level back in 2013 when they went into The Swamp and beat the Gators 26-20 without completing a forward pass. Fritz left for Tulane before GSU's Go-Daddy Bowl appearance. The team responded well and whipped Bowling Green, 58-27. Tyson Summers comes to GSU from Colorado State where he was the DC. A Georgia native, he nherits a team talented enough to win the Sun Belt title this season. Summers has gotten pretty much a "Who's He?" response from the media and Eagles fans when announced as the HC. Without a great deal of experience or hype, this may be one of the most lackluster hires of the offseason.
Hawaii
Out: Norm Chow
In: Nick Rolovich
Norm Chow just couldn't get it done at Hawaii. He went 10-36 in paradise and was let go nine games into the 2015 season. After interim HC Chris Naeole went 1-3 to finish the year, the search for a new HC was on. It didn't take long for the Warriors to find their man in Nick Rolovich. Rolovich, a product of Marin Catholic high and the City College of San Francisco, played under June Jones for Hawaii in 2000-2001. He went 8-1 as Hawaii's starting QB in 2001. Rolovich set a Hawaii record with 8 TD passes in a 72-45 win over BYU that year. In his pro career he played in the NFL, NFL Europe and the Arena league before starting his coaching career. Rolovich had already served on the Hawaii staff as QB coach in 2008-2009 ad then the OC/QB coach in the 2010 and 2011 seasons. In the last four seasons he had served as the OC/QB coach at Nevada. Rolovich understands the culture well at Hawaii and hopes are high on the island that he will produce a winner. Winning may not happen right away for the Warriors as they play California in Australia to start the season then play at Michigan six day later.
Illinois
Out: Tim Beckman and Bill Cubit
In: Lovie Smith
Let's go back to the week before the start of last season. Illini HC Tim Beckman was fired over a report citing his abuse of players on the squad. The AD also left in this scandal. OC Bill Cubit was then installed as the interim HC for 2015. Cubit guided the Illini to a 5-7 record and the powers that be in Champaign-Urbana took the interim tag of Cubit and on November 28, 2015 named him the HC, singing him to a two year, 2.4 million dollar contract. Then, in February of this year, UI named formed Illini player Josh Whitman as the new AD. Whitman came in and on March 5th (his first official day on the job) and fired Bill Cubit. Then two days later, Whitman announced the hiring of Lovie Smith as the new HC. Smith had just come off of being fired by Tampa Bay and had coached the Chicago Bears prior to his stint in the Sunshine State. Smith is a huge name and a big get for Illinois. However he has not coached in the college ranks since 1995. The pundits believe that Smith will have to make a big adjustment back to the college game and that building process will take time. Another huge concern is will Smith stay to see it through? If offered another NFL HC job, he may be gone.
Iowa State
Out: Paul Rhoads
In: Matt Campbell
Paul Rhoads was a good coach for the Cyclones, but he could never get the them over the hump in the Big XII. He compiled a 32-55 record in Ames and his teams went just 24-27 over last three seasons. In for Rhoads comes the energetic Matt Campbell. Campbell knows a little bit about winning. He played for the 600 lb. Gorilla of D-III football, Mount Union (OH). After two years as a GA at Bowling Green, he returned to his alma mater as an assistant for the 2005 and 2006 seasons. Mount Union won the national title in both of those seasons. After a second two year stint at Bowling Green, Campbell's career really progressed at Toledo. He was the Running Game Coordinator for the Rockets in 2009 an 2010 seasons before assuming the HC when Tim Beckman bolted for Illinois. Campbell amassed a 35-15 record in four seasons at Toledo with four bowl appearances. Local reaction to Campbell has been glowing to say the least. The effusive praise for Campbell sparked this comment over on one of the Iowa football message boards, "Apparently, they hired Bear Bryant at ISU."
Maryland:
Out: Randy Edsall
In: D.J. Durkin
Randy Edsall came to the Maryland program after basically building the UConn program and successfully seeing the teams' transition to the FBS. He never quite pulled off that same kind of winning magic and was let go six games in to the 2015 campaign with a 22-33 record. Durkin comes into the job with a good resume that features two coaching stints with both Urban Meyer and Jim Harbaugh. He was Harbaugh's DC last year at Michigan. He's known as a strong recruiter and he needs to be in the Big Ten where Michigan State, Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State are all in the Terps' division. The Terps have had some winning teams in the past, but Durkin could become a legend at Maryland if he could win a major bowl game. Maryland hasn't won a major bowl game since defeating Tennessee, 28-13 in the 1952 Sugar Bowl.
Miami
Out: Al Golden
In: Mark Richt
Mark Richt fell victim to John Cooper Syndrome with the Bulldogs. He won a ton of games, but the Dawgs never won the one big game to put the program over the top. Richt was let go by Georgia and stayed unemployed for about five minutes. The former backup to Jim Kelly at Miami will try to revive a program that has fallen on hard times. The nadir for the 'Canes last year was when they were crushed 58-0 by Clemson. Richt is being seen as a savior in Miami circles. However it will take him a while to build the talent level back up again in Coral Gables.
Minnesota
Out: Jerry Kill
In: Tracy Claeys
To say that Tracy Claeys and Jerry Kill have a shared a lot together as coaches would not begin to describe their association. After being named HC of Saginaw Valley State in 1994, Jerry Kill hired Tracy Claeys to be his LB coach. Claeys went with Kill to every other stop along the way serving as Kill's DC at Emporia State, Southern Illinois, Northern Illinois and Minnesota. With the Golden Gophers Claeys also acquired the title of Assistant HC to go along with his DC status. Claeys was always there to spell Kill as an interim HC after each of Kill's three very public bouts with epilepsy. Epilepsy claimed Kill's career and he stepped away as HC of the Gophers on October 28th of last season. Claeys guided the Maroon and Gold to a 4-3 record down in that stretch which was caped off with a 21-14 win over Central Michigan in the Quick Lane Bowl. Claeys, the long time assistant, had the interim tag removed from his name on November 11, 2015. Nobody knows how he will do at Minnesota, but it's good to see a guy rewarded for a lifetime of loyalty.
Memphis
Out: Justin Fuente
In: Mike Norvell
Memphis took a flyer on an assistant coach a few years ago and that turned out pretty well, so they have taken a flyer on an even younger one this time around. Mike Norvell replaces Western Michigan's P.J. Fleck as the youngest HC in the FBS. He's 34 years old and if his name sounds familiar to Pac 12 fans, it should be. For the last four seasons Norvell has been the OC at Arizona State. Novell has spent the majority of his career with his old boss Todd Graham. He followed Graham from Tulsa to Pitt to ASU. Even though he has no HC experience on any level he is regarded as a rising star in the coaching ranks. He inherits a talented Memphis roster even with QB Paxton Lynch gone to the Sunday league. 13 returning starters will help his transition, but don't look for Memphis to hit double digit wins in Norvell's first season.
Missouri
Out: Gary Pinkel
In: Barry Odom
The 2015 Missouri season was pretty much a dumpster fire on multiple levels. On the field, the Tiger offense couldn't cross the street, much less find the end zone. Off the field, a brief team boycott over racial issues on the Columbia campus rocked the program. The program rocked more and then reeled when 15 year HC Gary Pinkel retired to concentrate on his fight with lymphoma. So when the Tigers needed someone to come in and lift the program back up, the university turned to a Mizzou lifer, Barry Odom. Odom was a LB at Mizzou from 1996-99 and he has been an assistant coach for Tigers from 2003-2015. In that time he rose from being a grad assistant to the DC. He takes over a program where he knows the personnel well and the university well. Tiger fans hope he can provide stability to the program and an improved offense. Last year, the Mizzou offense averaged just nine points per game in SEC play and was held without a TD four times.
North Texas
Out: Dan McCarney
In: Seth Littrell
When Dan McCarney took the job at North Texas in 2011, he was expected to lead the Mean Green out of near decade long downswing. In his third year, it seemed he had. The Mean Green posted a 9-4 record in 2014 which included a 36-14 shellacking of UNLV in the Heart of Dallas Bowl. Then 2015 happened. UNT started out 0-5 and McCarney was fired the day after the Mean Green were hammered 66-7 on homecoming by their supposed "weak" FCS opponent Portland State from the Big Sky Conference. (Just ask Wazzu how tough Portland State was last year.) The team stumbled the rest of way through a 1-11 season under interim HC Mike Canales. The Mean Green went out and hired an actual Oakie from Muskogee and young assistant on the rise, Seth Littrell. Litrell played his college ball at Oklahoma where he played RB for the Sooners and was also one of the Captains of OU's 2000 national championship squad. Latrell rose quickly through the coaching ranks rising from a GA at Kansas in 2002 to the AHC/TE coac at North Carolina the past two seasons. Latrell will run a very uptempo game with an offense that will fling the ball all around the yard. His OC is former Texas Tech QB Graham Harrell who knows a thing or two about that. The Mean Green looks like they've snagged a good hire this time around.
Rutgers
Out: Kyle Flood
In: Chris Ash
To say Kyle Flood's time at the helm of the Scarlet Knights was rocky one is an understatement. Flood was tolerated in his first three seasons at Rutgers, but in 2015 that tolerance ended as he was embroiled in a scandal of alleged grade fixing that went with the worst and latest of criminal offenses by his players. On September third of last year, six Rutgers football players were arrested along with other suspects for their roles in a home invasion robbery. Five of the players were dismissed from the program before the season opener. It was also learned that most of the players had arrests from the previous two seasons as well. Flood and his athletic director, Julie Hermann were fired at the end of the season. Chris Ash was then hired to put out the fire and turn the program around. Ash comes from Ohio State where he spent the last two seasons as the Co-DC/S coach for the Buckeyes. He got his first job in the Big Ten when he landed the DB at Wisconsin. He stuck with the Badgers from 2010-2012 then served 2013 season on Brett Bielema's staff at Arkansas as the DC/DB coach. Ash is primarily a defensive coach, so look for Rutgers to shore up that side of the ball first in this rebuilding process. This hire is regarded by those who cover Big Ten football as good hire for the state college of New Jersey.
South Carolina
Out: Steve Spurrier
In: Will Muschamp
The Old Ball Coach always seemed to do things his way in his career and his exit form the other USC was no different. After the Gamecocks started 2-4 last season, he just called it quits in Columbia. Interim HC Shawn Elliot was no great shakes as his replacement as the Gamecocks went 1-5 to finish 2015. Then, as if the exit of Spurrier was strange enough, the administration did a stranger thing and hired Will Muschamp. Muschamp is another former Florida HC, However, Muschamp doesn't come with a national title in hand. His gator squads were a pedestrian 28-21 and he was the man in charge as they were embarrassed in that 2013 loss to Georgia Southern mentioned earlier in this article. Muschamp does do defense well, but can he discover an offense? If he can't the end zone could be a bird free zone in Columbia.
Southern Mississippi
Out: Jeff Monken
In: Jay Hopson
Jeff Monken inherited a dumpster fire at Southern Miss. He took a team that went winless in 2012 and in three seasons turned the program around. Last year, the Golden Eagles sported a 9-5 record and made it to the Heart of Dallas Bowl where they were beaten, 44-31 by Washington. The team Monken built is being favored to get back to the C-USA title game this year and possibly win the league. In late January, Monken was in the middle of contract extension negotiations with USM when he got a call from Dirk Koetter who just took over as the new HC of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Monken then cutoff negotiations and took off for Tampa to be the Bucs new OC. USM was sent scrambling for a new HC. The Eagles may have found a good HC in Jay Hopson. Hopson has a strong Mississippi coaching background. He's coached at Delta State, Ole Miss, had two previous stints at Southern Miss and for the last four seasons has been the HC at Alcorn State. The Braves come into 2016 as the back-to-back SWAC champions. Hopson has been handed a good team. The pressure he faces is inserting his style on a team that has won with another HC.
Syracuse
Out: Scott Shafer
In: Dino Babers
Scott Shafer came in 2013 to try and revive the dormant Syracuse football program. After an initial campaign where the Orange won seven games, his teams won seven games combined over the next two seasons and he was shown the door. The next HC at Syracuse is Dino Babers. Babers is a football lifer. He played for Dick Tomey at Hawaii gaining 295 yards and scoring three TDs as a senior running back in 1983. He spent a good deal of his coaching career in the Pac 10. He spent 1995-2000 at Arizona where he rose from WR coach to the QB/OC job. His other stint in the league came when he spent the 2004-2007 seasons on Karl Dorrell's UCLA staff. He coached WRs then RBs in Westwood. Babers earned the Syracuse gig after leading Bowling Green to an 18-9 record with two bowl appearances in the past two seasons. Babers will switch the Orange to an up tempo offense much like the one at Baylor where he spent four seasons on Art Briles' staff.
Texas State:
Out: Dennis Franchione
In: Everett Withers
The Texas State Bobcats spent their first five seasons in the FBS under Dennis Franchione where he posted a 39-43 record. That's not a great record, but over those seasons the Bobcats showed enough potential to be able to join the Sunbelt Conference. The successor to Franchione is Everett Withers who has worked a long time to get to a HC job. Withers started out as a player at Appalachian State form 1981-1985. In 1988, he started his coaching career as a DB coach at Austin Peay and then spent time in a lot of places. He's coached for Tulane, Southern Miss, the Saints, Louisville, Texas, The Titans, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio State and James Madison. He was finally noticed for HC vacancies after serving as the AHC/CO-DC/S cache for the Buckeyes in 2012-2013. He took the James Madison Dukes to two FCS playoff appearances in 2014 and 2105 before being offered the Texas State job. If Withers has a good couple of seasons with the Bobcats, don't be surprised to see him lead a power five conference team in the near future.
Toledo
Out: Matt Campbell
In: Jason Candle
With Matt Campbell exiting to take the Iowa State job, the Toledo braintrust didn't take long in promoting his OC to the HC job. Candle has been the OC since 2013 and is another one of these guys with ties to Mount Union. He played for Purple Raiders and coached there too. He won two national titles as WR then coached WRs there form 2003-2006 and then was the OC there from 2007-2008 before being hired by Campbell onto the Toledo staff in 2009. Candle is a good hire to keep Toledo's string of recent success going.
Tulane
Out: Curtis Johnson
In: Willie Fritz
The consensus was that Curtis Johnson wasn't a great hire by Tulane a few years ago and the consensus was right. Johnson's Green Wave squads limped to a 15-34 record over the past four seasons and he was shown the way out of Bourbon Street at the end of the 2015 campaign. In comes Willie Fritz. Fritz is a proven winner. He has amassed a 193-69 record as a HC. He led Blinn JC to two back-to-back JC national titles in 1995-96 where his QB was Michael Bishop of Kansas State fame. He then piled up wins at Central Missouri State and Sam Houston State before leading Georgia Southern to a 17-7 record as they transitioned to FBS play in the Sunbelt Conference. If Fritz does what he's done everywhere else, the folks at Tulane will have more to cheer about than just the French Quarter.
UCF (University of Central Florida)
Out: George O'Leary
In: Scott Frost
The Golden Knights started the 2015 season at 0-8. The day after that eighth loss, George O'Leray resigned. Just two seasons prior UCF was 12-1 and and played in the Fiesta Bowl. Danny Barrett assumed the interim coaching duties and the Knights finished their season winless. UCF then went out and hired one of the hottest assistant coaches around, Scott Frost. Yes, that Scott Frost. The former Nebraska QB that led the Cornhuskers to share of the 1997 National Championship with a win over Peyton Manning's Tennessee Volunteers. After a journeyman playing career int he NFL, Frost stated his coaching career as a GA at Nebraska in 1992. Frost worked his way up and has been the OC for Oregon the past three years. Frost is a talented coach, however there' not much in the cupboard for him to work with at UCF. Frost's work will at the very least be a three season rebuilding project.
ULM (Or the school formerly known as Louisiana-Monroe)
Out: Todd Berry
In: Matt Viator
The coaching graveyard known as ULM claimed another victim last season as Todd Berry was fired with two games left in the 2015 campaign and the Warhawks sporting a 1-9 record. For the record though, Todd Berry has never headed a winning program in his career anyway. So, how bad is ULM? well, the school has only posted one winning record in the last 21 years. The Warhawks went 8-5 in 2012 when they pulled off a 34-31 win over Arkansas to start the season and finished the year with 45-14 loss to Ohio in the Independence Bowl. Viator is an in-state pick for ULM. for the last 10 years he has been he headman at McNeese State where he led the Cowboys to five FCS playoff berths. The ULM braintrust hope he can use his strong ties in the state to boost the program to a respectable level.
UTSA (University of Texas-San Antonio)
Out: Larry Coker
In: Frank Wilson
Back in 2009, Larry Coker was out of football and his powerhouse Miami teams at the turn of the 21st century seemed like ancient history. UTSA then came along and made Coker their first ever HC. The program was originally slated to play at the FCS level. Coker built the program from scratch into a squad that went 4-6 in a 10 game introductory schedule into FCS play in 2011. Then, as conference realignment swept over the college football landscape, UTSA received an invitation jump up to FBS play and join the WAC. The Roadrunners played a full 12 game FBS schedule and finished 8-4 in 2012. UTSA then Joined the C-USA for the 2013 season after the WAC collapsed and has been there ever since. Coker "resigned" after last season when the Roadrunners stumbled to a 3-9 record. Coker's replacement is master recruiter Frank Wilson. For the last six seasons Wilson has been the Asst. HC/RB Coach/Recruiting Coordinator at LSU. UTSA hired Wilson for his recruiting prowess, but he has never been a HC or even a coordinator at the college level. Outside of OC/QB coach Frank Scelfo, most of Wilson's staff is stepping up to new positions too with not a great deal of experience. That could cause some growing pains for the Roadrunners over the next few seasons.
Virginia
Out: Mike London
In: Bronco Mendenhall
Mike London was let go after his fourth straight losing season with the Wahoos. London's first year showed promise back in 2011 with and 8-5 record and an appearance in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl. (Side note: I laugh at how the euphemism for losing a bowl game has become "an appearance".) Things went downhill after that for London with his teams going just 19-41 from 2012-2015. Then, in a stunner that rocked NCAA coaching circles, the Cavaliers lured Bronco Mendenhall away from BYU. Mendenhall looked he would be a BYU lifer in the mold of LaVell Edwards. He Amassed 99 wins in Provo over his 11 years at the helm and took the Cougars to a bowl game in all 11 seasons as well. So why did he leave Wasatch Country? The only thing this intrepid reporter can think of is that this is his big chance to jump into a power five conference job.
Virginia Tech
Out: Frank Beamer
In: Justin Fuente
Frank Beamer played QB at VaTech from 1966-68. Then after starting his coaching career at the high school eventually returned to lead the Hokies from 1987-2016. His teams featured great special teams and defense. "Beamerball" became a household word in college football circles. So, how do you fill a legend's shoes when he retires? You go out and hire the hottest young HC out there. Justin Fuente. Fuente took a Memphis program that was in the landfill and turned it around. The Tigers won 19 games over the last two years with QB Paxton Lynch became a household name in the process. Fuente also did one very smart thing when he took over the program. He kept DC Bud Foster. Foster's defenses were the cornerstone of Frank Beamer's Hokie squads. I liken Fuente retaining Foster on his staff to Pete Carroll keeping Ed Oregeron on the USC staff after "He Who Shall Not Be Named" was fired. The only question is can Fuente live up to the praise and hype this hire has generated.
Until next time folks remember that every coach knows his Xs and Os, but you win the game with the Johnnys. and the Joes.
-The Commissioner
