The Tennessee Volunteers officially fired Butch Jones on Sunday following perhaps the most embarrassing loss of the season, a 50-17 drubbing at the hands of Missouri, dropping them to 0-6 in the SEC this season. Tennessee was hoping to wait until the end of the year to fire Jones, but they simply decided they wouldn't wait any longer.
Now, who are they targeting to replace him? Here are all the latest news & rumors you need to know:
Jon Gruden: "Never say never" about Tennessee job
Gruden is Tennessee's top target to replace Jones, and while there are still questions about whether Gruden will leave his ESPN gig to take the job, he told Mike & Mike "never say never":
“You know what Mike, I haven’t talked to anybody and all I really have in my life is my family and football, that’s it,” Gruden said. "I’m real sensitive to the coaches that are out there, so I don’t speculate. I just love football and I’m just trying to hang on to the job I have. I’m very fortunate to be with the people I’m with.
"I don’t know what's going to happen in the future, I just know this — I’m going to give my best effort to the game, stay prepared and I love Monday Night Football, don’t plan on leaving, but as you know in life, you never say never to nothing."
Gruden started his career as a grad assistant for the Vols and has called coaching Tennessee his "dream job," and reportedly started calling coaches about potentially joining him as assistants in Knoxville.
The final Monday Night Football broadcast of the season is on Christmas Day, five days after AD John Currie's Dec. 20 deadline for hiring a head coach. However, could very easily leave his role with ESPN before then.
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Dan Mullen not interested in Tennessee job
Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen has been linked to both the Tennessee job and the Florida job, but he says he's not interested in either.
"I love the one I have," said Mullen. "I think what you can see if what we've been able to build Mississippi State into, as I keep saying. When you look around, we've been able to build a facility. You've got an AD (athletic director John Cohen) that's been a coach and hugely supports our football program. We've built a team that's a Top 25 program, in my mind. And with the atmosphere on Saturday night, I have a great job.
"I think everybody has an opinion in the world of what I should and shouldn't do. But most of the people that know me, friends that have known me for a long time, they know I like my own opinion. I'm not really interested in other people's opinions all that much. So I like my own opinion."
Mullen is 68–45 in nine seasons with the Bulldogs, including a 7-3 mark so far this season.
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