The Tennessee Volunteers officially fired Butch Jones earlier this season and have begun their coaching search over the past two weeks. Jon Gruden seems to have emerged as the favorite for the job, but there are still a number of other coaches the Vols have shown interest in. With the season coming to a close this weekend, here are all the latest news & rumors you need to know:
Vols to name coach by end of the weekend
Tennessee has been conducting their coaching search for the last two weeks, and they expect to name a new head coach by the end of the weekend, according to Gridiron Now.
The University of Tennessee’s search for its next football coach is not officially two weeks old, but sources close to the process of finding Butch Jones’ replacement believe the Vols could have their next head coach within 72 hours. (Note, this article was published at 4:30 PM ET on Friday, November 24th)
Multiple sources on the UT campus, as well as people close to members of UT’s Board of Trustees, indicate that first-year athletics director John Currie could potentially wrap up his search by the close of the weekend or first of next week.
Tennessee is hoping to avoid their first ever eight-loss season when they take on Vanderbilt today. The Vols are also looking to pick up their first conference win of the season.
Iowa State's Matt Campbell, Ohio State's Greg Schiano two likely candidates
If Gruden doesn't take the job, the Vols will look at two other coaching candidates, according to SEC Country's Brian Stultz.
Other names that have come up besides Mullen is Ohio State assistant Greg Schiano and Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell.
Campbell has become one of the hottest coaching prospects in the nation after leading Iowa State to a surprising 7-4 record including wins against Big 12 giants Oklahoma and TCU. Schiano has served as Ohio State's defensive coordinator for two seasons after spending three years as the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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Dan Mullen not taking the Tennessee job
Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen has not interviewed for the Tennessee job, despite reports, and reiterated on Thursday that he has no plans to leave Starkville.
"As I said, I'm very, very happy here," Mullen said after Mississippi State's Egg Bowl loss to Ole Miss. "I'm happy with what we've built, I have a great president (Mark Keenum) and great administration. You look at our fanbase and the program we've built, I think it's pretty special. I'm fortunate to be the head coach and (athletic director) John (Cohen) and Dr. Keenum have both told me they want me to continue to be the head coach here—before the game they did, we'll see what they say right now."
That's because the school plans to give him a pay raise and are going "all in" to keep him, according to Sports Illustrated's Bruce Feldman.
Mississippi State knows Dan Mullen is a pretty hot commodity these days and is prepared to “go all in” to try and keep him in Starkville, a source told SI Friday morning. The 45-year-old Mullen is already getting paid $4.5 million, but word is the school is willing to bump him up to around $6 million and also making an even stronger financial commitment to his staff.
Mullen is 69–46 in nine seasons with the Bulldogs, including an 8-4 mark this season.
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