The University of Massachusetts' search for its first Bowl Subdivision football coach could be winding down shortly as Notre Dame offensive coordinator Charley Molnar appears to be the front runner to replace Kevin Morris, who was fired last month.
According to sources familiar with the search, Molnar and UMass athletic director John McCutcheon were negotiating a contract offer Tuesday afternoon and an announcement could be imminent.
If Molnar is hired, when he'd start is uncertain. Notre Dame will play Florida State in  the Champs Sports Bowl on Dec. 29. In some cases when an assistant coach is hired, a program will let them leave immediately to begin his new job. In other cases, a coach will stay through a bowl game while starting to recruit and assemble a staff.
If hired, it won't take Molnar, 50, long to get up to speed on the Mid-American Conference. He worked at Central Michigan, with Kelly, Western Michigan and Eastern Michigan before following coach Brian Kelly to Cincinnati and Notre Dame.