ATHENS — Mark Richt laughed off a question about the Miami more than a month ago, and it certainly seemed like he wasn’t interested.

But that was before Richt was out of a job, and now Richt is at least speaking to the Hurricanes – and apparently meeting with them.

Richt met with Miami officials at an Atlanta hotel on Tuesday, a source said. Richt could not immediately be reached for comment.

Richt was a quarterback at Miami from 1979-82, and went to high school in nearby Boca Raton. But he was born in Omaha, Nebraska, and lived there and in Denver as a child before moving to south Florida.

The advice to Richt from some family members and others close to him has been to take at least a year off. But Richt has also been open that he would listen to offers, and said Monday that he would like to get back to calling plays and coaching quarterbacks.

“I’ve been coaching for 33 years straight, and that’s a long grind. It can wear a man out a little bit, especially sitting in the head coach’s chair,” Richt said Monday. “We’re very excited about our future. It very well may be that we stay in Athens. We may stay in Athens for good. I don’t know what’ll happen yet.”

Maryland and Virginia have also reached out to Richt, according to the source. Richt said Monday that “about five” schools contacted him on Monday.

Miami has also interviewed Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen, former Rutgers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano, and former Hurricanes coach Butch Davis, according to ESPN and the Miami Herald.

This is what Richt said in late October, after Miami fired Al Golden, when asked what he thought about leaving Georgia for Miami.

“I don’t think much of it, really,” Richt said, smiling. “I love my alma mater. The U, no doubt about it. But there’s been nobody calling or writing or texting or anything like that. I’m sure they’ll find a great coach.”