I’ve never read anything about it being Mack’s dream job, but I do believe he’s really interested. A very reliable insider has mentioned that Alford wants the job badly, I’m guessing to be closer to home.
This time of year--and with a job opening at a school that has demonstrated they will pay top dollar for a quality coach--you can expect coaches to have their names leaked whether it's a realistic pursuit or not. Perhaps the Memphians can chime in on this, but Calipari used to get a raise virtually every season with a rumored interest in IU (2 times if I remember correctly) and NC State minimally that I can recall.
In my opinion Alford and Louisville is Exhibit A of such a leak. I can't see him as a good cultural fit for Louisville and cultural fit is important here; there are unique dynamics to coaching in a town that is the Jerusalem of the sport.