VTTW Board Index

I think Jon Gruden is going to be our next coach.  There.  I said it.  I also think a lot of you feel the same way and are afraid to say it out loud, for fear that we'll get burned again.  I can't blame you for that.  But I think it's going to happen.   :thumbup:

Cosign

I agree with you and yes I know how crazy it sounds. But there is too much smoke.

I swear if you have jinxed this.... :pin:

I want to believe . . .

If it does happen I cannot wait for someone to point out Mark Howard said there is NO CHANCE it would happen.

OK, let me say...I do not think that way.  When I see and smell smoke, I think something is on fire.  I also think smokescreen. Call me cynical.  I will not believe it until I see and hear Gruden say yes.

I believe with cautious optimism. :)

That is a very valid statement. However in the case of smokescreens there is usually somebody denying something. The only denial that has been issued was a weak non-committal response by ESPN saying Gruden is committed to MNF, which means nothing beyond this season, especially when their own employee (Mortensen) believes he could be interested in the UT job.

 :secret:  I don't believe....just like i didn't believe that we would beat UF.  Gruden is just a pipe dream....I predict we end up with Strong, or some other safe but not bedazzling hire.  Wish I could believe..... but we have had the football jerked away at the last minute so many times.  We are like Charlie Brown...we keep believeing that Lucy will let us kick it.  I am totally prepared for Sonny Dykes, or some other slappy.  We aint the prettiest girl at the dance any more....we are the ugly kid sitting in the corner with the other nerds.  I just hope somebody agrees to be our coach.  . 

If it is Sonny Dykes then I quit.

I'll cosign that shizzle. If it's someone like Dykes then my attitude toward UT football will probably not change . . . I will be waiting for something good to actually happen before I can have any positive feelings or desire to go to games.

The thing is I'm almost sure that he's a better X & O coach than Dooley, but c'mon... if we can't do better than Sonny Dykes or the dude at La Monroe, then why not keep Dooley for recruiting and stability?

I don't think Hart is going after Sonny Dykes.

I'll take the job! No buyout either. Just give me plenty of money for assistants and lets roll.  I'll be in over my head but that hasn't mattered in the past why should it now?  :naughty: 

Dittos

If Gruden is hired, it's hard to imagine him as more than a short-term fix. If he's successful within 2-4 years, the NFL will throw unbelievably large wads of cash his way.  Of course, even a short-term fix is better than no fix.

Mega.  This hire has to be somebody with a proved track record at a high level of football, be that either in the NFL or at a BCS conference level school.  Anything short of that and firing Dooley was a waste of $5 million.  

We may all be very happy on Nov. 30th.   :hi5:

I will only be happy on that date if the Panthers are celebrating a Blue Cross Bowl victory.   :clap:

I want to believe so badly.  I agree that there is alot of smoke.  Most of the time it is one person hearing something, but this time, a ton of people keep talking about it.  Also, like Jeff said, if Gruden was comfortable in his current position and not interested, why not come out and put it to bed and issue the comment of he doesn't have any interest?

Also, I disagree with Flea, if he is our coach, why would he only be here for 2 - 4 years?  The thing is he has won a super bowl in the NFL and 2 AFC titles.  What is left to prove in the NFL?  Also, the dude is loaded, so I can't see this being all about cash and the NFL throwing a ton of money at him.  If he builds a national championship team at UT, he would go down as one of the best coaches of all time....an NCAA champion and an NFL champion...not many could say that at all.

Ditto, I think he's coming!

Vinnie, that limb you are on better be sturdy!!

You really can't think in terms of more than 5 years in this biz anymore.  Just ask Urban.   

I thought it was December 22?    :dance:

SMH...everyone knows the Mayan calendar ends on 12/21...they have to announce before that.

Hey guys and gals...  One thing that no one seems to be discussing is the supposed offer on the table that Arkansas has for Gruden.  Has he come out and declined it yet?  I haven't seen
anything that he has, but might have missed it...  ok, carry on... 

Arkansas is a toilet...you can put lipstick on a pig but it is still a pig.  He may go to USC or some other good job if he doesnt come here, but I don't think arkey is even in the race. 

It may be a toilet, but with the Wally World and Tyson Chicken big money supporters they can pay more than we can right now. 

If it's about money with Gruden, Arkansas will win that one. 

If 100,000 Vol fans contribute $500 each, that would be $50 million.  More than enough to do ANYTHING, really.

Who wants to sign up for that?  I would, if I thought it would get us back to the top 15 year in year out.   :naughty:

I don't think money is all that matters to Gruden.

This is true but his buyout will be massive. I guarantee it.

If he wants back in the NFL, there are going to be plenty of marquee jobs opening THIS year.  Dallas, Philly, Cleveland, San Diego, and more.  I'd say that any of those organizations would throw the kitchen sink at Gruden if they thought they could get him.  And he may yet end up going that route.  But I don't think so.  

Agreed.  With the way Hamilton screwed buy outs out royally during his tenure, I have a hard time seeing Hart make the same mistake.  If, and this is a big if, Gruden is serious about coming to UT, then he will have to agree to a big buyout from his end if he wants to be paid the huge money.  

That said, I still don't see it happening with Gruden.  

I look for Philly and Cleveland to each throw about $7-8 million at him and see what happens 

From everything he's told me, he does not like cold weather cities. I don't care if it is all in my head.

Every negotiation represents the balance of power between the parties.  In regards of leverage, etc.  Right now, Gruden has all the leverage relative to UT.  If Gruden wants to be paid more than his current multi-million per year contract with ESPN, he has the leverage to demand it from UT (certainly given the pro teams and Arkansas that  are rumored to want him).

Also, I don't expect a huge  buyout. Because it is in Gruden's best interests to have a reasonable buyout, but not a huge one.  A huge buyout wouldn't benefit him because he may want to coach pro ball in 4-5 years.  And UT should feel comfortable without a huge buyout, because the only way this works out is if the relationship stays mutually strong.  If either UT or Gruden eventually don't want each other, a contractual buy out is a poor way to keep the relationship intact.  And a non-huge buyout could benefit UT if Gruden doesn't live up to the hype.  

Good luck in your coaching quest.

A month ago I was scoffing at UT fans who thought Gruden would be the next coach.

I'm no longer scoffing. The delusional ones now are likely the ones who think Gruden has no interest in the job.

I still think the most likely outcome is that he stays in the broadcast booth. But if he returns to coaching I think he's UT-bound.

I never said Gruden would not be coach, just that he would not be coach at mid-season.  I think many realized this after some of the initial excitement wore off, but even then, I didn't think Dooley would get the axe until near the end of the season, and hey, that part was right.  maybe I'm just a good guesser this one time.

My current guess is that Gruden might be our coach.  His name certainly was being circulated earlier in the season. I heard the rumors myself first-hand at the Letterman's Club.  I have speculated that it might have been convenient to drop the name of a popular choice for coach that is highly unlikely to leave ESPN just to pacify the fan base for a while and buy time.   That's 100% pulled from my arse...I don't make any claim that it absolutely is so, or whatever, but at the time it seemed the only way to explain all the rumors.

Water under the bridge...but maybe he will be the coach...now, after Dooley finally removed any doubt whatever and made his firing inevitable.  Who knows, maybe he called that fake punt because he knows he isn't up to it and wanted to make it that much easier for Hart.  Or he's just a idjut.

Regardless....I would not be terribly surprised if Gruden is the coach.  I do think it's not the likeliest outcome though.

Dooley really screwed things up by not making a bowl.  The plan was for tge new coach to coach the bowl game, I think.  Would've been valuable time with new coach and the team.

Agree

Amen to that

Nobody is on board with this?  Heck, if you get two season tickets at cover price, for 7 home games, that's about $1000 dollars even without a donation (assuming a $70 ticket price).

So it's just another measly $500!  Come on, people.

All you people wanting Gruden...just start a website where fans pledge even $100 to augment his salary.  With just 10,000 donors you can give him a $1 million bonus.  Can't be that hard!  :naughty:

If I thought that's what was necessary to get him, I probably would.  But, not necessary.