COLUMBUS, Ohio -- We've learned in recent weeks that Jim Hackett, Michigan's interim AD, is the man who will decide coach Brady Hoke's fate -- and execute the coaching search if Hoke isn't around for the 2015 season. In all likelihood, though, Hackett's permanent replacement will be in place by the start of the 2015 football season. What does that mean? Michigan has to hire a coaching Superman. It needs someone bigger and more established than the AD's office. Otherwise, the coach could wind up looking over his shoulder because his new boss did not hire him. The new AD might have a different idea about whom the school would like as a coach. That requirement narrows Michigan's candidate list to two:
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