Coaching search spans U.S.

Bobby Lutz of Charlotte has his team in Worcester, Mass., for its opener 12:15 p.m. today against North Carolina State.

Bobby Knight of Texas Tech has the Red Raiders in Tucson, Ariz., for its first-round game against UCLA at 9:55 p.m.

Frank Haith of Miami is back in Florida after his team lost its NIT opener at South Carolina on Tuesday night.

The three have been contacted by Champ Sports regarding interest in the UT vacancy, sources said Wednesday.

A representative from Champ Sports, the Los Angeles firm hired by Tennessee to spearhead a search to replace Buzz Peterson, is attempting to meet with Knight in Tucson today, a source said.

Lutz also has been approached, a source said.

His 49ers are 21-7 this season and earned his fifth NCAA berth. Lutz has a career record of 135-82 at a Conference USA school in the heart of Atlantic Coast Conference territory.

Haith is a well-traveled coach, just completing his first season as a head coach at Miami with a 16-13 record.

Since 1990, the native New Yorker has been an assistant coach at UNC-Wilmington (1990-92), Texas A&M (1992-95 and 1996-97), Penn State (1995-96), Wake Forest (1997-2001) and Texas (2001-2004).

While at Texas, Haith helped coach Rick Barnes to two Sweet 16 appearances and a Final Four berth from 2002-04.

Oliver Purnell of Clemson is another possibility.

Purnell turned programs around at Radford, Old Dominion and Dayton. He was 22-7 in his final season at Radford in 1991, 21-10 at Old Dominion in his final season in 1994, and 24-6 and a No. 4-seed in NCAA tournament two years ago at Dayton.

He was 10-18 in his first year at Clemson, but led the Tigers to an NIT berth this season.

Other possible candidates still preparing for NCAA Tournament games:

• Mike Anderson of Alabama-Birmingham (tonight vs. LSU).

• Winthrop's Gregg Marshall (tonight vs. Gonzaga).

• Dan Monson of Minnesota (Friday vs. Iowa State).

• Karl Hobbs of George Washington (Friday vs. Georgia Tech).

• Dana Altman of Creighton (tonight vs. West Virginia).

As for Peterson, he's at home in Knoxville pondering a future in coaching.

He said Wednesday he would still be interested to know when Champ Sports was hired and when they began contacting coaches about possibly coming to Tennessee.

"I've gotten calls from coaching friends who said, 'Sorry I didn't call you, but some people contacted me three weeks ago to see if I would be interested in Tennessee,' " Peterson said. "That just really bothers me.

"The whole thing I ask for is honesty."

UT athletic director Mike Hamilton said Wednesday Champ Sports was hired on March 4, the day before UT's final regular-season home game against Georgia.

"I was adamant for them not to contact anybody referring to the University of Tennessee because we still had a coach," Hamilton said. "I stand by my statement: I was trying to make it work until the very end (with Peterson).

"If they were contacted three weeks ago, it wasn't by Champ Sports."

Hamilton said UT solicited bids from various search firms "two or three days" before awarding Champ the $25,000 deal on March 4.

Hamilton fired Peterson on Sunday and announced it officially in a press conference Monday.

Meanwhile, former North Carolina coach Dean Smith said UT should have given Peterson, his former player, another year.

"Who am I to be telling Tennessee how to run their program - but I think it could have been done much better. And ideally (Peterson should have) another year and let him know it would just be one more year," Smith told The Associated Press.

"I know he's capable, and I'm sure it would come through."