Ed Lamb does not fancy himself much of a card player. He says his poker face is terrible. So when he says he has not been involved in any coaching discussions other than those with his current staff as Southern Utah prepares for the playoffs, it seems accurate.
On Wednesday, Lamb, Southern Utah’s eighth-year head coach, told Skyline Sports that he has not applied for or been recruited to apply for the head coaching position at Montana State. MSU athletics director Peter Fields fired Rob Ash after nine years at the helm for Bobcat football on Monday. Lamb’s name instantly surfaced as a potential candidate.
“I honestly have not had any contact with any other school outside of the school I’m currently at,” Lamb said. “I have not applied for any job and no school has been in contact with me. I’m concentrating on the task we have in front of us.”
This season, Lamb led Southern Utah to its first Big Sky Conference title in program history. The Thunderbirds (8-3) play at Sam Houston State on Saturday afternoon.
Lamb, a BYU alum, said he has not heard from anyone looking for potential candidates, including the Bobcats. The Denton (Texas) Record-Chronicle and the Montgomery (Alabama) Advertiser have reported that Lamb has applied for the vacancy at North Texas. Lamb also denies that report.
The 41-year-old Lamb has been the head coach at Southern Utah since 2007. He led SUU to the Great West title in 2010. In 2012, the Thunderbirds joined the Big Sky Conference. In 2013, SUU made its first FCS playoff appearance. This season, the Thunderbirds posted a 7-1 record in Big Sky play to secure their first conference crown. In eight seasons at the helm, Lamb is 45-46. He is 20-13 against the rest of the Big Sky, including posting back to back wins in Bozeman in 2013 and 2015.
Lamb played defensive end and linebacker at BYU in 1995 and 1996. His first job came as the defensive line coach at Division III University of Redlands in 1997. He spent 1998 until 2000 as the defensive coordinator before taking a graduate assistant job at BYU in 2001. In 2002 and 2003, he served on Tom Cable’s staff at Idaho. In 2005, he joined Jim Harbaugh’s staff at San Diego where he stayed until his hiring in Cedar City.
