Miami, FL (Sports Network) - Florida International has scheduled a news
conference for Friday afternoon, at which time Ron Turner is expected to be
introduced as the school's new football coach.
According to the Miami Herald, Turner has been selected to be the third coach
in the program's history. He would replace Mario Cristobal, who was fired last
month after six seasons at the helm.
Turner spent the past eight years as an assistant in the NFL, including this
past season as quarterbacks coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He does have
collegiate head coaching experience.
After a 7-4 mark in a one-year stint at San Jose State in 1992, Turner guided
Illinois for eight years from 1997-2004. He posted a record of 35-57 with a
pair of bowl appearances and a Big Ten championship.
His first team at Illinois went 0-11 in 1997, but he built a program that went
10-2 in 2001 and won the conference title. The Illini, though, won just nine
games over the next three seasons.
Turner has also been a college assistant at Arizona, Northwestern, Pittsburgh,
USC, Texas A&M and Stanford. His pro coaching experience includes two stints
as offensive coordinator with the Chicago Bears (1993-96 & 2005-09), as well
as two years with Indianapolis (2010-11).
Cristobal was 27-47 during his tenure at FIU, including 3-9 in 2012.
The Sports Network