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MIAMI (CBS4) - Off the field, the University of Miami Hurricanes have been improving for the past few years. On the field, the team was mired in mediocrity since losing the national championship following the 2002 season, which meant a change was desperately wanted by fans and alumni. Saturday night, that change finally came.

Head coach Randy Shannon was fired by the University, which immediately started the speculation about who would take over a program who hasn't sniffed the national championship title race in eight years.

It wasn't much of a surprise for most astute college football fans, especially after UM's loss to USF on Saturday.

"Honestly, I think it was a decision that needed to happen," UM student Sarah Brandenberg said. "He was great for the students and we loved him, but he hasn't brought us the wins that we needed."

"I personally would have given him another year, but it was justified," said UM student Xavier Bowden. "He didn't perform as well as expected."

Miami athletic director Kirby Hocutt said money wasn't an issue, and, "We're going to do whatever it takes to get back to the top of the college football world."

A decade ago, that would have been easy to accomplish. But Miami's pedigree has been damaged in recent years with the losses piling up. The Hurricanes are a long way from the dominating teams of the 80's and 90's.

Still, the Hurricanes program carries a championship pedigree and is in talent-rich Florida. So it should be appealing to a number of coaches who are looking for work. The question is who?

Initial speculation immediately turned to former Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach, and current ESPN Monday Night Football analyst, Jon Gruden. "Chucky," as he was affectionately known for his sideline scowls would be an interesting hire for Miami.

Gruden carries a Super Bowl pedigree, having won the big game with the Bucs. However, his last years in Tampa Bay were bad and he was fired by a Bucs team who essentially imploded the franchise and started over again without Gruden.

In addition, Chucky would be without arguably the biggest piece of his Super Bowl winning coaching staff, Monte Kiffin. The defensive guru is trying to help rebuild his son's defense with USC and wouldn't be coming to coach defense with Gruden.

Late Sunday night, SI.com's NFL insider Peter King pretty much put the kibosh on the rumors of Jon Gruden coming to the University of Miami. On his Twitter page, King wrote, "Jon Gruden is not going to the University of Miami. Period."

Gruden didn't put out the flames and left some wiggle room with a statement he issued through his current employer, ESPN.

"I am committed to Monday Night Football and to ESPN," Gruden said. "I enjoy working with Mike, Jaws and our entire crew and am just trying to get better at this job."

Part of the problem a new head coach will face is an apathetic fan base that doesn't enjoy driving all the way to Sun Life Stadium to see the Canes. Last Saturday's loss against the University of South Florida Bulls drew only 26,369 fans. That's a far cry from the hey-day of the Canes at the Orange Bowl.

Winning can change that, but South Florida fans are fickle at best, and if you're not contending for championships; they won't come to support you.

"We need somebody that's experienced and understand what it takes to win, and understands the great tradition around here," defensive lineman Adewale Ojomo said. Of course there's a certain sense of irony of a player who couldn't win, wanting a coach who can win.

Hocutt enlisted the help of Chuck Neinas - a consultant who specializes in finding the right coaches for schools - and giving him an initial list of candidates. Hocutt would not divulge who the initial targets are, and stressed that Miami will take as much time as it needs to make the right hire.

Georgia head coach Mark Richt, a former Hurricane himself, said he wasn't going to come to the University of Miami. Texas Tech head coach Tommy Tuberville had a rough season, but he has a lot of job security in West Texas.

Former Texas Tech head coach Mike Leach could be an interesting hire for "the U." He's an offensive genius who kept an average Texas Tech team near the top of the brutal Big XII south during his tenure in Lubbock. But, he was fired after an ugly incident involving the son of an ESPN analyst.

A name that should be near the top of the list is Boise State head coach Chris Petersen. He's run roughshod over the WAC and has notched program changing victories over Oklahoma and TCU in BCS games. Overall, he's 59-5 since taking over the program in 2006.

But Petersen has been rumored for other jobs before and has stayed put. Still, the allure of coaching Miami and being on the biggest stage each and every night might be enough to persuade him, though he's likely going to stay at Boise.

A coach who could be under the radar, but could really shake things up in South Florida would be Brady Hoke. He's a hot commodity after turning around both Ball State and now San Diego State University. Hoke's team at SDSU is around three or four plays of being undefeated.

Temple head coach Al Golden has been interviewed for the UCLA job, but withdrew his name. He also was linked to the Tennessee head coaching job, but again withdrew his name. He took a Temple team that was awful and has led them to back to back 8+ win seasons.

But, Miami is looking for a big name to try and make the program competitive again. It's going to be tough though to get UM back to the top of the mountain.

Florida State is playing for the ACC Championship and is a program on the rise. Although the Florida Gators had a brutal season; they are just a few years removed from a phenomenal run at the top of the college football world.

The Hurricanes expect to have a bowl destination, possibly the Sun Bowl, by week's end, and the assistant coaches have vowed to remain in place through the bowl game. After that though, it's unknown whether they will be retained.

Whatever the direction, UM fans have one thing to cling to as the season ends, hope.

"I guess I'm looking forward to the future," said UM student Rick Dobbs. "I feel bad for Randy, but at the same time, I'm looking forward to a new direction."

CBS4's Gary Nelson contributed to this report.