College football

Miami return man heads to NFL as Coker fires four

MIAMI - Devin Hester's decision was difficult. Miami coach Larry Coker felt the same about his.

Hester, Miami's standout kick returner, will skip his senior season and enter the NFL draft. He revealed the plan Monday, hours after Coker fired four assistants following consecutive three-loss seasons.

Hester becomes the 11th Miami player to forgo his final season of eligibility for the draft in the past five seasons; seven Hurricanes who left early were first-round picks. He hasn't signed with an agent but said his decision is final.

"I know I'm a football player," Hester said. "No matter what opinion people have, that's fine with me. I'm just willing to go in right away and get with a team and help any way I can. I'm a player that's willing to do anything."

Hester's decision wasn't unexpected, but Coker's moves two days after the ninth-ranked Hurricanes lost 40-3 to No.10 LSU in the Peach Bowl stunned most people around the program. The coach fired offensive line coach Art Kehoe, offensive coordinator Dan Werner, linebackers coach Vernon Hargreaves and running backs coach Don Soldinger.

Combined, the fired coaches were involved with Miami for 59 seasons.

"For me, it's definitely personally a very tough decision," Coker said. "But it's a decision I think had to be made. ... We have high standards here, high standards are set and I think we have to work hard to live up to those standards."

Miami was 9-3 this season and is 53-9 in Coker's five. Six losses came the past two years, including the humbling Peach Bowl loss, the Hurricanes' worst defeat since 1998.

Kehoe was at the school since 1979, and coached on each of Miami's five national championship teams.

"I've got all the emotions raging inside of me right now," Kehoe said. "You've just got to quell yourself and just try to do something better for yourself and your family. ... Last time I checked, we won more, we played in more big games, we'd done more in college football than anyone in the whole game."

[Last modified January 3, 2006, 04:50:35]