Nutt to be paid off

Mississippi has agreed to pay former Coach Houston Nutt a lump sum of $4.35 million to complete his contract buyout. Nutt was fired after the 2011 season with about $6 million remaining on his contract. Ole Miss Athletic Director Ross Bjork said Saturday in a statement that the school’s agreement with Nutt, who coached Arkansas before heading to Ole Miss, happened last month, and the one-time payment would save the athletic department about $550,000. Bjork said the agreement was a “win-win for everyone and both of us can now move ahead.” He said the money came from the school’s private athletic foundation. Nutt coached for four seasons at Ole Miss, leading the program to backto-back Cotton Bowl victories in 2008 and 2009 before slumping to a 2-10 record in his final season. m Former Tennessee Coach Derek Dooley is headed to the Dallas Cowboys as wide receivers coach. The Cowboys reported the move on their website Saturday night. Dooley will replace Jimmy Robinson, who could stay with Dallas in another capacity. Dooley was fired at Tennessee in November after posting the longest run of consecutive losing seasons at the school in over a century. He was 15-21 in three seasons but just 4-19 in the SEC and 0-15 against Associated Press Top 25 teams. Dallas Coach Jason Garrett and Dooley were on the same staff with the Miami Dolphins in 2005-06. Garrett was quarterbacks coach, and Dooley coached tight ends. Those are Dooley’s only two years of pro experience.

Houston Nutt