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Bob Toledo calls it idle chatter.

Toledo, an ex-UCLA head coach and the University of New Mexico's offensive coordinator, has been tied to several high-profile head coaching vacancies.

He said he hasn't been approached by anyone interested in offering him a promotion.

"Since I was a head coach at a Pac 10 school, my name gets thrown out there all the time," he said. "People want to speculate about all these jobs, and I'm an easy name to add to their list."

Although he said he is happy at UNM, Toledo did say a few premium jobs could lure him away.

There are nine vacancies in Division I-A football, with another spot being filled by an interim head coach. Of those, Stanford and Arizona State are the most appealing to Toledo.

The Cardinal would be an ideal fit because it is close to his grandchildren and extended family in Los Angeles.

Toledo said he has shared his feelings with UNM head coach Rocky Long, but added he is focused on coaching the Lobos (6-6, 4-4 Mountain West Conference) as they prepare to take on San Jose State (8-4, 5-3 Western Athletic Conference) in the New Mexico Bowl on Dec. 23.

"Rocky knows if the right job came along for a lot more money, I'd have to consider it," Toledo said. "When you've been out of coaching for awhile and you get a second chance, you tend to take advantage of it.

"But right now no one's even contacted me unofficially, so I'm not worried about it. I'm just an easy name to throw around."

Long said he is not eying any of the coaching vacancies, and no one on his staff has been contacted about any jobs.

"I haven't even had time to think about anything like that," Long said.

Lobos healthy: Redshirt freshman quarterback Donovan Porterie has been cleared to practice and play, recovered from an ankle sprain that forced him to miss UNM's final two home games.

He pushed off the left ankle firmly and did not rely on a bulky brace during UNM's first bowl practice, a frigid workout Monday night.

"It feels real good," Porterie said. "I feel like it's finally better, and I can move around like normal again."

Porterie split time with senior backup Chris Nelson, who led the Lobos in a loss to BYU and win over San Diego State.

Long said the quarterback who looks the best during the week leading up to the bowl game will get the starting job.

McKamey returns: Senior quarterback Kole McKamey, who suffered a torn ACL early in UNM's second game of the season, practice with the Lobos on Monday.

It was the first time since his injury that he worked out with the team.

McKamey said he told the trainers Friday he wanted to do his throwing and running rehabilitation with the team, and they agreed.

He will participate in the team's quarterback drills, but he said won't be taking away snaps from other quarterbacks preparing for the bowl game.

"It feels awesome to be out here again, throwing with the team and catching up on a lot of the things I missed," McKamey said. "When I was first learning this offense, it felt like I was learning a foreign language. Now that I've learned the language, it's more like riding a bike. I'm a little rusty, but I know how to ride it."

McKamey said he was told he should hear about his petition to the NCAA for a medical redshirt for a sixth season by Christmas.

Long said McKamey is ahead of schedule but far from participating in heavy workouts.

"It's part of his mental rehab," Long said. "We want to see him back out there and for him to feel like he's still part of this team."

Long chose Florida: Long has a vote in the USA Today Coaches Poll. He ranked Ohio State No. 1, Florida No. 2 and Michigan No. 3.

"I just didn't want to see a (Michigan-Ohio State) rematch," Long said. "I don't think there should be a rematch unless they earn it in a playoff system."

Long said he supports a 16-team playoff, with 11 conference champions and the top five ranked teams that didn't win their league title getting at-large bids.

Ohio State coach Jim Tressel, whose team has 51 days off between its final regular season game and national title showdown, has said in interviews it would be impossible to squeeze in playoffs before a championship game.

Long disagrees.

"There's plenty of time," he said. "The other levels of college football play 15 games, and high schools regularly play 16 games during their playoffs. It would work. The BCS schools just don't want to give up all the money and the power to participate in a playoff."