Guys! Let me bring you up to speed on what’s REALLY gone on in the Tennessee coaching search. I am personally connected to mega-booster Hugh Jerextion, so I am fully aware of everything that has gone on that the press isn’t telling you.
As soon as we fired Butch Jones, Nick Saban called wanting this, his dream job. The real reason they lost to Auburn is because he was lobbying for the Vols job during preparation week, and was actually looking for houses in the Knoxville area as late as Friday night. The old AD wanted to hire him, but the Trustees rightly concluded that he hasn’t won enough. Sure, he has won multiple national titles, and at 2 SEC schools, but he sucked at Miami in the NFL and it was decided that we need and deserve someone who can win at the highest level. So, that’s when we decided to pursue Gruden. There was a deal in place and he wanted to come here, because the Super Bowl he won in Tampa was a good stepping stone to this, his dream job. However the old AD decided that he wanted too much money (20 million a year and a personal Rolls Royce factory built at his house), so he turned him down. Strike 1. Then, we decided we might be able to settle for Bill Cowher. So the old AD approached him, and obviously he was ready to leave the booth and coach at this, his dream job. Despite having some very quirky requirements, like installing spittle shields on every facemask and office desk, a deal was in place and he was ready to come. But then the old AD decided that he wanted too much control (he wanted to be the coach, the DC, the AD, the Dean of Research, and the Chairman of the Board of Trustees) so he said no! Strike 2! So then, the old AD finally decide that the right thing to do is to settle for Bill Belichick. Yes, he has won a million Super Bowls, but none without Tom Brady. So, a deal was reached in the dead of night for Bill to leave NE with 4 games left to coach at this, his dream job. Unfortunately, the trustees decided that we don’t think we can rely on the NCAA to pass the special petition to grant Brady 6 more years of eligibility, because he would have to have been a package deal with Bill. Therefore, Belichick didn’t work out either. Then the old AD decided we needed to settle for a middling hack like Schiano, and that’s when all hell broke loose. No Super Bowls, not even any National Championships. Obviously he had to go, and now Phat Phil is back to clean this shit right up. It’s unclear who Phil’s first target will be (and only target, what Phil wants Phil gets), but there are rumors that Joe Gibbs, Jimmy Johnson, and Tony Dungy are on the list.
