I think Neuheisel interviewed with the 49ers in early 2003. He denied it initially. Later on he admitted to it. He was gone before the start of the 2003 season, because of an illegal NCAA basketball tournament pool.
We had someone do that to a bunch of yards on our street last Fall. Our neighbor across the street lost almost their entire garden and nearly saw flames reach their house. This is before the rains had arrived yet when everything was still bone dry.
The bottom line is you asked why Putin might prefer Trump to win and I gave you an answer: Many Trumpers sympathize with Putin, a fellow member of the authoritarian far right, and want to abandon Ukraine to his rule. Even Trump's chosen running mate feels this way!