FAYETTEVILLE -- Chris Bucknam could have become the head coach of the Minnesota men's cross country and track and field teams after the 2008 outdoor season.
The job offer came just as the NCAA Outdoor Championships were set to be held in Des Moines, Iowa, on June 11-14.
But Bucknam, then completing his 25th year as the men's and women's coach at Northern Iowa, turned down Minnesota. He wanted to wait and see if he could land the University of Arkansas job.
John McDonnell had announced in April of 2008 that he was retiring as the Razorbacks' coach when the outdoor season ended, and Bucknam had gotten indications he was on Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long's short list of replacements.