Vol fans have gotten excited about the prospect of Jon Gruden becoming Tennessee’s next head football coach. But one national source doesn’t believe any of the “Grumors” around the Vols.
According to Scott Roussel of Football Scoop, Vol fans hoping for Gruden to be on Tennessee’s sideline for the 2018 season are in for disappointment. Roussel said Gruden has “no interest” in the Vols.
“This is not happening,” Roussel writes. “No one is being contacted about potentially joining his staff. Move on Vol fans”
Roussel says that everything he’s heard and reporting is from “whispers that we have been hearing within the coaching profession.”
While Roussel shoots down the idea that Gruden could be the Vols’ head coach, he does add that Florida State’s Jimbo Fisher might be interested.
“More than one coach has mentioned to us that he has heard ‘Jimbo Fisher is willing to listen,'” Roussel continues. “This one makes no sense to us here at FootballScoop, but it is a datapoint in so far as how odd it is that it is even being whispered. Why Jimbo would want to leave the FSU lifestyle to recruit on a plane more often than not is a head scratcher, but we’re sharing what we’re hearing.”
Fisher has been the Florida State head coach since 2010 and has led them to a national title in 2013 and appearances in the Orange Bowl twice and a Rose Bowl. This season, however, Fisher’s Seminoles have had the worst season during his tenure. They’re currently 3-6 and have struggled since losing star quarterback Deondre Francois.
Roussel also adds that “several coaches have shared with us that Currie plans to vet” David Cutcliffe at Duke. Cutcliffe is known at Tennessee for being an extremely successful offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Vols.
He also says that “we’ve heard it from more than one source” that Minnesota’s P.J. Fleck is also on John Currie’s list.
Roussel goes on to say that Mississippi State’s Dan Mullen doesn’t make sense to him at Tennessee.
“Has all the job security in the world in Starkville,” Roussel says of Mullen. “Why risk it here? Upside is a couple of million dollars & potentially an easier shot to play for a National Championship? Downside is significant.”
He also says that Jeff Brohm at Purdue is an intriguing candidate, but many coaches fear that he may not be ready for a job like Tennessee.
“There is no question Jeff Brohm’s offense is one of the most exciting & effective in college football,” Roussesl states. “His buyout is definitely manageable for Tennessee. The pause from coaches is, ‘I don’t know that he’s ready to lead that program. Have to recruit nationally. His staff would likely need some changes. Do you trust him to out coach Nick, Kirby, Muschamp and whoever Florida hires each year?'”
John Currie told one of Tennessee’s commitments in the 2018 class on Sunday that his timeline for a hire at Tennessee is before the early signing period begins. So whomever Currie decides to go with, expect an announcement well before December 20th.
One Response
Honestly, Grudens absence from coaching lends credence to not really having the fire in the belly to do this job. Important to get someone that accepts the challenge of TN, not just accepting a paycheck. Whoever, just needs to run an offense that is 21st century and understands the meaning of “misdirection”.