The headhunter that brought MSU and Dantonio together
There is an interesting story in USA Today about sports consultant Chuck Neinas. He was the headhunter that Michigan State’s committee used to help find Mark Dantonio. USA Today reports that Neinas has an enormous amount of influence over various college coaching careers and is considered to be the No. 1 headhunter in college football.
Sports consultant Chuck Neinas has a standing request with big-time college football coaches: Don’t change your cellphone number without informing me. The fact that most would comply without a peep shows the influence that Neinas — the No. 1 headhunter in college football — wields over coaching careers.To coaches and athletics directors, Neinas is the middleman with the plan, a powerful behind-the-scenes operator who always seems to be involved in the most lucrative coaching searches.
The president of Neinas Sports Services in Boulder, Colo., has handled six coaching searches this season alone. He’s leading the hunt to fill vacancies at Alabama and Louisiana Tech. He recently has completed four coaching searches that concluded with the hirings of Randy Shannon at Miami (Fla.), Butch Davis at North Carolina, Tom O’Brien at North Carolina State and Mark Dantonio at Michigan State.