Friday, November 24, 2017

With The Coaching Search Apparently Coming To A Close Soon, Who Is Getting The Tennessee Job?


Tennessee is set to finish off today against Vanderbilt what could potentially be, with a loss, the worst season in school history. The Vols lost their first 7 SEC games, they fired Butch Jones, they don't have a guaranteed quarterback of the future, and the fan base morale, already at the lowest it’s been in my lifetime, could plummet to near suicidal levels if John Currie screws up this coaching hire.
I don’t have much to say about the Vanderbilt game. Tennessee should win because they’re at home and they have more talent, but finishing 5-7 for the fifth time in the last ten seasons is something that would’ve been unthinkable for Tennessee fans ten years ago.
Which is why everyone is trying to bury this year in the deepest darkest bowels of their mind and focus solely on the coaching search, which is, at this point, been nothing but speculation, Twitter rumors, and wishful thinking. Jon Brice’s report yesterday that the search would be wrapped up within the next few days has only made everyone more anxious.
So where have we been with this important decision the last two weeks? In the immediate aftermath of Butch being fired, a large majority of the fan base did everything BUT make an animal sacrifice at the altar of Jon Gruden, all while allowing themselves to be trolled into oblivion by a guy who just wanted his ego stroked and his ass kissed. Gruden, in my view, has been overstated as a coach, and his reputation was enhanced beyond what it should have been because he’s been out of coaching and in the broadcast booth for a decade. The truth is, he only won about 50% of his NFL games, and in his last 6 years in Tampa, the Bucs only made the playoffs twice, and lost their first game twice as a home favorite. He’d be expensive, he hasn't been in college coaching since 1991, and besides a likable personality, I'm not sure he has any other elite coaching or leadership skills.
Which brings us to Jimbo Fisher. I’d love to have Fisher, but all indications are that if he was going to leave Florida State, it'd be for Texas A&M. Personally, I don’t think Fisher is leaving FSU, and he’s just allowing his name to be floated as a check against the administration in Tallahassee who would allegedly expect him to make a ton of coaching changes in the off-season. Fisher holds all the power here; if the school chose to fire him, they’d owe him $40 MILLION. This is just another maneuver by him to pull more power to himself during a season where everything has gone wrong for the Seminoles.
Chip Kelly is apparently off the table, perhaps for everyone. Reportedly, he turned Tennessee down, and thankfully, Florida has also moved on. UCLA still remains extremely interested. Here’s something I wouldn’t rule out though: if Oregon’s Willie Taggert takes another job (like Arkansas or Ole Miss), I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Kelly went back to Eugene. Why not? He’s already dominated there, the fan base would be all about him, and he and Phil Knight have an extremely close relationship. It'd be a slam dunk.
So who is left? Who would the fan base be all-in on? I think we’re down to two names Rocky Top would accept without question: Dan Mullen and Chris Petersen. I don’t have a feel for what Mullen would do, besides that he’s reportedly, “interested” in the job, whatever that means. I’m sure he’s also “interested” in the Florida job, now that Chip is no longer an option. And we aren’t even sure he’s interviewed with Currie for the job yet. And if Currie is making a decision by the end of the weekend, then we only have two options:
  • Mullen isn’t getting the job.
  • Currie is planning on offering Mullen the job when they interview, and he’s either fairly certain that he’d accept it, or he’s got a promise from another candidate that he’d take it if offered.

Mullen would be a fine choice that would have a chance to do a great job if hired. But if these Chris Petersen rumors are true, then he'd be my unquestioned first choice of the available candidates. Petersen’s reps allegedly reached out to Tennessee, he has a low $1.5 million buyout, and he’s been a fantastic head coach at both Boise State and Washington. Since 2006, his first year at Boise, he’s been a roaring success, as he's gone 128-28, won 6 conference championships, and finished in the Top 10 five times. Sure, Petersen is a northwestern guy who has never coached anywhere with near as much pressure as Tennessee, but I’d be willing to roll the dice on a guy with that track record. Plus, the media pressure and fan base angst won’t be unbearably high if he shows up next year and wins 9 games, which is totally doable with the talent that’s currently in place.
But if this Petersen things turns out to be a lie, and they don’t get Mullen either, then where do they go? Washington State’s Mike Leach is probably too kooky, Minnesota’s P.J. Fleck just signed a contract extension, Ohio State’s defensive coordinator Greg Schiano loses the press conference, and Colorado State’s Mike Bobo gets Currie fired the moment he’s announced. UCF’s Scott Frost is probably more interested in Florida or his alma mater Nebraska, and Iowa State’s Matt Campbell, while impressive this season, probably isn’t quite seasoned enough. Memphis’s Mike Norvell, SMU’s Chad Morris, and Purdue’s Jeff Brohm are all unproven, and only Brohm is at a Power 5 job.

I have no idea what to think. This Petersen stuff has given me hope over the last 24 hours, but I wouldn’t bet my life on it happening. And the fact that Mullen and Currie haven’t definitely met yet makes me think that isn’t happening either. And if I’ve learned anything being a Tennessee fan the last decade, it’s to always expect the worst. Which means it's going to be Greg Schiano. God please don't let that be the outcome here.

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