Oregon has become relevant, intermittently flirting with elite status in the past decade, by being different. The uniforms are sometimes mesmerizing and sometimes blinding, but we’re all paying attention to the fashion trends. The 3-year-old football complex looks like it’s out of a Kubrick film; it’s a wonder in a sea of new athletic structures.

But where Oregon has truly been set apart is in its decisions to internally promote the three head coaches it’s had since Rich Brooks stepped aside in 1994. Promoting coordinators fosters continuity and loyalty. That’s great, in theory. It worked terrifically with Mike Bellotti and then with Chip Kelly.

But it isn’t working with Mark Helfrich, whose teams without Marcus Mariota playing quarterback are now 12-10. What felt like regression in 2015 feels like a freefall in 2016, now that Oregon is 3-6 overall and 1-5 in league play following a 45-20 loss Saturday at USC.

It’s no secret that the defense, which clearly has not been repaired via Brady Hoke’s arrival, is the central issue. In the five Pac-12 losses, the Ducks have allowed an insane 259 points (51.8 per game) and crazier 3,141 yards (628.2 per game). Those conference opponents have run a dizzying average of 88 plays per game.

With remaining games against Stanford, Utah and rival Oregon State, a 3-9 season is not at all out of the question. And a 6-6 finish feels like nothing more than fantasy.

What it means: The time has come for Oregon, at least in this case, to behave more conventionally to remain relevant. It’s time to pay for a coach.

In talking this week with various agents, administrators and other industry sources, it’s becoming clearer and clearer that Oregon - backed most notably by Nike magnate Phil Knight - is ready and willing to spend.

Reports of $10 million per year may be an exaggeration, but … how much does Oregon have for a new staff?

“A lot,” one agent told us, with another echoing that he could “easily” see $5 million or more per season. That’s a number that, along with limitless resources for facilities and support staffing, would prove quite attractive to a number of sitting head coaches.

Among the mutual fits:

Don’t listen to those saying the bloom is off the rose. (More on that later.) Still the top commodity out there, he would have to be considered. Oregon has long leveraged recruiting speed and talent out of California and Texas, and Herman has plenty of connections to both. If Herman isn’t sure whether Texas will open — or if he’s the lead candidate there — Oregon presents itself as a very strong option. Herman, 41, takes his family back to California every summer, so there’s still a sense of connection to the West Coast.

“Nike” coaches

We’re also told to keep an eye on Power 5 coaches at Nike schools. Since Oregon would be going outside the building for the first time in the modern, big-business era of the sport, relationships with Knight and Nike have to be considered pluses. North Carolina’s Larry Fedora and Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy immediately come to mind, because of their success and offensive brands. For a variety of reasons, both would likely listen. For starters: UNC will always be a basketball school, and Gundy continues to spar with superbooster T. Boone Pickens. Perhaps he’d get along better with a shoe tycoon than an energy baron? Because of its wardrobe evolution, Oklahoma State is often known as “Oregon Lite.”

Mississippi State’s Dan Mullen

Not a Nike guy, but Mullen just might make the most sense. The upset of Texas A&M on Saturday provides yet another example of the overachieving work he’s done in Starkville. He’s an innovative offensive guy, and, scratching the particular itch in Eugene, he has had a knack for hiring solid defensive assistants. Current defensive coordinator Peter Sirmon just happened to play at Oregon. He’s also been an assistant at USC and Washington. Also of West Coast note, quarterbacks coach Brian Johnson played and coached at Utah, where Mullen was once Urban Meyer’s OC. This adds up in many ways, including the fact that, ya know, Oregon had its highest level of success with a fast-talking guy from New Hampshire.

Boise State’s Bryan Harsin

If Oregon ultimately doesn’t opt to break the bank, Harsin would be a juicy choice. Harsin’s predecessor at BSU, Chris Petersen, was said to be interested in the Oregon job when it went to Kelly and again when it promoted Helfrich. Now at division rival Washington, Petersen is taking it out on the Ducks (and everyone else). Harsin is presently 29-7 at Boise, and the idea of the pupil and mentor squaring off is certainly intriguing.

But expect Oregon to aim higher, if it dismisses Helfrich. And it should if any of the guys above are on board.

Let's move on to some other notes from the carousel ...

Texas wants to keep Charlie Strong. That’s the indication that industry sources and those close to the program have given 247Sports.

That position has been supported now that the Longhorns have won consecutive games to get to 5-4 (3-3 in the Big 12). Coaches and agents have felt as if eight victories would leave Strong in a safe place.

But 7-5? We’re told that would be dicey. So we’ll grant Texas the Kansas win to get to six victories, making remaining games against West Virginia and TCU vital in determining the course of the program.

Herman and Fedora, a native of the state, are the names we continue to hear the most.

UT decision-makers would ultimately like to retain Strong for two reasons. One, they genuinely like him. They’ve seen a cultural turn in the building, and they’d like to see the results follow. They want to allow patience for that.

Secondly, if there’s a move to be made, they’d prefer the permanent AD to be in charge of that transition. It’s less about pseudo-interim Mike Perrin, who is well liked, and more about there being no awkwardness when the new AD arrives not having hired the football coach. All indications are that Texas would like to have a new AD in place by summer 2017, at the latest.

The NCAA’s Oliver Luck (previously at West Virginia), Ole Miss’ Ross Bjork, Virginia Tech’s Whit Babcock, Arizona’s Greg Byrne, Oklahoma’s Joe Castiglione and Kansas State’s John Currie are among those who have been mentioned for the Texas AD job. If Scott Stricklin didn’t just leave Mississippi State for Florida, he might have been in Texas’ crosshairs.

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At Baylor, it’s no real surprise that some candidates are less than enthusiastic given the drip of negative headlines in the past six months. But there are three reasons many remain interested: Baylor has money, it’s proven it can win in the Big 12 and there’s healthy respect for new AD Mack Rhoades.

The central matter Rhoades and the school’s board have to decide is how far they want to get away from the Briles coaching tree. If that’s of little concern — and perhaps it is considering Briles’ staff was allowed to stay for the 2016 season — Philip Montgomery has Tulsa at 7-2 in his second season. Montgomery was on Briles’ staffs going back to the Stephenville High days in the late 1990s.

If that’s too close for comfort, Syracuse first-year coach Dino Babers was a Baylor assistant from 2008-11 - but he’s worked a dozen or so other places. He isn’t a “Briles guy,” necessarily. Babers’ first Cuse team is 4-5, with a big upset win against Virginia Tech. He’s highly respected among coaches and would provide offensive continuity.

Getting further away from Briles, SMU’s Chad Morris has deep roots in the state and runs a similar tempo style. The Mustangs have been improved in Year 2. He would be a solid mutual fit.

Rhoades has twice before interviewed Cal’s Sonny Dykes, for the openings and Missouri and Houston. Dykes runs a tempo system and is from the state; his distaste for the Cal administration has not been a secret. He’d love to get back home.

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An industry source asked the other day whether the shine had come off Herman, now that Houston has lost two AAC games. (And nearly lost two others.)

The answer is and should be no, and here’s why: Many people, including many who work in the sport, admit they were fatigued by the amount of buzz Herman and his team received in the glow of the Week 1 win vs. Oklahoma. There was exposure that bordered on overexposure, for a variety of reasons. But that should not influence in any way the decisions being made by a school thinking of hiring him. Herman is presently 20-3 at Houston, with the program’s first conference title since 2006 — and in a better league than the one Art Briles won. Briles’ best two-year run at UH was 18-8. His replacement, Kevin Sumlin, had a 17-8 run over two seasons.

So don’t lose sight of the accomplishment. Herman learned staff organization and program management subtleties from Urban Meyer, and he has a better forward-facing presence. He’s remains the best head coaching prospect in years, his peers insist. Don’t talk yourself out of that based on Navy and SMU losses ,or the fact that you’re tired of hearing about him and his team.

***

Industry sources agree that P.J. Fleck needs to leverage his success at Western Michigan, where the Broncos sit at 9-0. His name has been mentioned for jobs such as Baylor and Oregon, but Purdue is the one that makes the most sense for both parties.

The 35-year-old Fleck has never had a college job outside the Midwest. For your first Power 5 job, some coaches say it’s best to stick with what — and where — you know best.

Purdue has some upward mobility, strange as that sounds for a program that hasn’t had a winning regular season since 2007 and hasn’t won 10-plus games since 1979.

The school’s leadership does seem to care about spending and improving. Commitment matters. Donors and former players met in San Diego in 2015 to discuss ways to prop up the program. A byproduct of that was the promise of $60 million to upgrade facilities. A new AD, Mike Bobinski, was brought in to usher that change. The school has told third parties that it will pay to bring in a bigger name, like Fleck.

But what the Boilermakers need more than anything is a voice. They need visibility. And that’s what the energetic Fleck brings as much as anyone in the sport. On the more palatable side of the conference, Fleck could certainly make Purdue competitive.

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If Mullen should happen to leave Mississippi State, here’s someone who coaches and agents agree would be excellent there: Charlie Strong.

Should the Batesville, Ark., native not survive this season at Texas, Strong would be a terrific cultural fit for a program that has historically relied on developing middle-tier recruits. Mullen is well liked by the fan base, but it took some adjustment for what seemed to be a fish out of water. There would be no such acclimation for Strong.

“That would be bad news for Ole Miss. I know that,” an industry source said. “Charlie would dominate recruiting in that state.”

This is Travis Haney's first article for 247Sports as a national college football writer. Haney previously worked for ESPN. You can follow him on Twitter here.