I'm pretty sure that is what will happen. I can't see how McDonald stays on. We aren't going to pay a WR coaching OC $, and I definitely don't see him taking a pay cut, especially if Lester stays on as OC and will need a pay bump. McDonald feels cheated, sure they could work things out, but i'd be extremely surprised if he were back next year.
I agree with you that I'd be surprised if he were back next year.
Contract ending or not, I strongly believe Shafer will offer McDonald an opportunity to stay on the staff. Shafer is loyal and showed as much by not letting McDonald go after the 45 minute outburst. They have at least 6 games over 7 weeks and I could very easily see them mending their relationship over that time. All that said, I think McDonald will definitely find opportunities this offseason, most likely as a WR coach. He has a very attractive resume for a BCS program, especially with his recruiting track record. For those saying that his constant jumping around would appear to diminish his marketability, I apologize, but you couldn't be more wrong. First, the nature of that profession is that guys move around frequently until they latch onto a Coordinator or Head Coaching type gig at the FBS level. That profession does not follow the principles of Corporate America. Head coaches are let go in 3-4 years if they don't prove themselves. How often are CEO's cycled in and out of public companies? Let's take a look at his resume:
2000 - Ball State (GA) - Left to take be a position coach. Nothing shocking here.
2001-2003 - Northern Illinois (WR) - Coached Sam Hurd and PJ Fleck. Both had stints in the NFL. Left to take a position coach job at a P5 conference team.
2004 - Stanford (TE) - Coached Alex Smith (3rd Rd NFL pick) to his best year in college and Second Team AA on a team that went 4-7. Head Coach was fired after season (Dec 6, '04) and entire staff was let go.
2005-2006 - Western Michigan (OC/WR) - Hired Dec 15, '04. Coached Greg Jennings (SR) to MAC POY honors and Tony Scheffler in '05 (both 2nd Rd NFL picks) and WMU to second bowl bid in history in 2006.
2007-2008 - Minnesota (WR) - This was his his most questionable move, saying he felt he needed to be at a P5 school to enhance his career. New Minn HC that year in Tim Brewster. Coached and developed Eric Decker (So-Jr years).
2009-2010 - Cleveland Browns (WR) - NFL jump, likely significant pay bump. Tenure coincided with Eric Mangini's HC stint in Cleveland. Mangini fired on Jan 3, and George accepted position with Miami on Jan 11, '11.
2011-2012 -Miami (WR/PGC) - Hired by new HC Al Golden. Coached Travis Benjamin and Allen Hurns. Left for Arkansas on Dec. 19, '12, coincided with hiring of Bielema Dec. 4, '12.
2013 - Arkansas (WR) - Brief stint, but he left for an OC position with a P5 on Jan 17, '13. Nobody can hold that against him.
2013-2014 - Syracuse (OC/WR) - Had 18 games as OC, which many will have differing opinions on his success or lack thereof.
2014 - Syracuse (WR) - Was demoted and voiced his displeasure. Many will understand, but Lane Kiffin still seems to be able to get jobs.
Recruiting Notoriety:
Western Michigan - Looks like this is where McDonald started targeting and developing his connections in South Florida. Didn't pull any big names, but a few 2*'s from some notable areas.
Minnesota - BOOM! 2 classes were ranked #57 and #17 in 2007 and 2008, respectively. 2005 and 2006 classes were #55 and #61. Nothing too notable in 2007. In 2008, note Minnesota was 1-11 in 2007, McDonald landed 2 4* WR's, a 3* WR and a 3* RB, all from out of state. Extremely impressive. He had Minn involved with 2 4* QB's, a 5* WR, a 4* WR, a 4* DE and a few 3* guys; most of which were from South Florida.
Miami - Back utilizing one of his best assets...the new coaching staff scrambled to keep class intact in 2011 posting the #36 class. In 2012, they had the #9 ranked class, with a significant # of kids from South Fla. McDonald was named one of Rivals Top 25 Recruiters.
Syracuse - We all know what he added, so no need to elaborate further.
