Joe Nicholson – USA TODAY Sports

The Wisconsin Badgers will be interviewing Oregon State Beavers head coach Mike Riley sometime this week, as per a report from CBS Sports. Rumors have been swirling around about several candidates that the Badgers have shown interest in, but now the attention has seemingly shifted to Riley. Miami Hurricanes head coach Al Golden was reportedly a front runner for the position, but withdrew from the race on Thursday.

The 59-year-old Riley is in his second stint with the Beavers and led Oregon State to a 9-3 record in 2012, as well as a spot in the Alamo Bowl. Riley coached Oregon State from 1997-1998 before leaving to coach the San Diego Chargers for three seasons. He returned to the Beavers in 2003 and has since compiled a 73-52 record.

The former Pac-12 coach of the year is reportedly under contract with Oregon State until 2019, and every time the Beavers make a bowl game his deal rolls over for another year. He earns a reported $1.5M a season, but if he secures the Badgers job that may increase.

Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez, who will be coaching the team in the Rose Bowl, has been looking at options ever since Bret Bielema bolted for the Arkansas Razorbacks last week. Alvarez will want to make the right hire of course, but he also can’t take too much time doing so. It would make sense to have a coach in place as soon as possible to help with the upcoming recruiting process.

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