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  • All this ebb & flow is enough to make you choke on a dang turkey leg! I'm in the 50/50 camp at best on JG, but all the speculation swirling around a potential Gruden hire is flat out exhausting. Yea, everyone understands that the process that has to play out w/Hart, but I've gotta think @ the end of the day it's the $$ guys that will ultimately pull the trigger on this hire. And I certainly get that a financial commitment of this scale requires some serious due diligence, but I find it hard to believe that the real decision makers can't figure out how to get a deal done if the Gruden interest is legit?

    mlm ●

  • Two big things hurting Gruden to UT.
    1. ESPN pressure to stay in the booth for MNF
    2. His agent, contract won't let you get near Gruden unless you basically waive all rights and crown him kind by signing off on their agreement.

    TNBOLES

  • 34_TNBOLES said...

    Two big things hurting Gruden to UT.
    1. ESPN pressure to stay in the booth for MNF
    2. His agent, contract won't let you get near Gruden unless you basically waive all rights and crown him kind by signing off on their agreement.

    Both of those messages are coming from message board posters. I wouldn't put too much stock in either one. I'm like the OP, it's 50/50. Either he comes or he doesn't. Pretty easy odds to figure out if you ask me.

    Jersey Vol

  • Tony and several other people have said some many different things, they will say "i told you so" no matter what happens..

    OMGJonGruden

  • actually, the ESPN part is on record. It was edited out of PTI yesterday, but ESPN published it in error..

    There's no doubt that ESPN likes Gruden on MNF. They will put pressure on him to stay.

    Here's the link

    ESPN removes reference to Jon Gruden leaving from PTI broadcast | ProFootballTalk

    Weve seen another example of that today. According to Deadspin, ESPN.

    profootballtalk.nbcsports.com

    TNBOLES

  • 34_TNBOLES said...

    actually, the ESPN part is on record. It was edited out of PTI yesterday, but ESPN published it in error..

    There's no doubt that ESPN likes Gruden on MNF. They will put pressure on him to stay.

    Here's the link

    I saw that yesterday too, but I have a hard time believing my kind of "pressure" from ESPN is going to keep Gruden from doing what he wants to do. If he stays in the booth, it will be because he wants to, not because he's giving in to his current bosses. He's a big boy.

    It's gonna be the same deal if we hire a current coach. Stoops, Strong, etc, their bosses are not going to be happy either that they are losing someone they have invested in, but at the end of the day, these coaches do what they want and what's best for them.

    smasher423

  • OMGJonGruden said...

    Tony and several other people have said some many different things, they will say "i told you so" no matter what happens..

    Exactly. This guy is the Us Weekly / Tiger Beat of Knoxville media.

    "Whether UT lands Fisher, Gundy, Golden, Strong, Patterson, Mora or Stoops, it's going to be worlds better than what we've seen in the last half decade. I'll take any of those guys to the bank."

    I agree that are in for an upgrade but how is Golden in that sentence?? C'mon........

    GeneHarrogate

  • i guess i relate it with the same way Saban handled coming to Alabama. Miami was very upset with him leaving. They did not want to see him go, even though his record was not great, he was turning things around. He didn't handle the pressure well. He flat out lied and lost a lot of respect from the league in how he departed.

    I personally feel that ESPN is a whole different animal. They give opportunities and they take opportunities. ESPN is King. don't think Gruden doesn't recognize that he's working directly for the King and the wrong decision here and now, could wreck future opportunities if ESPN is adamant about keeping him.

    This could get ugly imo.

    TNBOLES

  • 34_TNBOLES said...

    i guess i relate it with the same way Saban handled coming to Alabama. Miami was very upset with him leaving. They did not want to see him go, even though his record was not great, he was turning things around. He didn't handle the pressure well. He flat out lied and lost a lot of respect from the league in how he departed.

    I personally feel that ESPN is a whole different animal. They give opportunities and they take opportunities. ESPN is King. don't think Gruden doesn't recognize that he's working directly for the King and the wrong decision here and now, could wreck future opportunities if ESPN is adamant about keeping him.

    This could get ugly imo.

    Yeah that's definitely a fair point. ESPN is not a place that any coach needs to have burned bridges. Hopefully if Gruden does decide that he wants to go back to coaching (at UT or anywhere else), it can be handled professionally and there isn't any ugliness or drama. But you're right, with an entity that powerful, you never know what dirty tactics they might employ...

    smasher423

  • JMO, Tony's statements lack substance. Tony says that Tennessee has concerns about Gruden. Well of course they have their concerns; they have concerns with each coaching candidate and rightfully so. What's more, I don't believe that "Gruden is more interested in Tennessee than Tennessee is in Gruden." Come on man!!!!

    This post was edited by utkdominic on 11/22/2012 at 8:05 PM

    utkdominic ●

  • You know, I started following all these radio hosts and bloggers on twitter to find out more about the new coach, including Basilio, and truth be told... they don't know shyte. I mean seriously, Basilio has been all over the place. Either he's full of it or his sources suck. I'm just saying... I have a hard time believing anything any of those guys say. One day they're all Gruden. The next, it's over. Listen, Basilio doesn't know anything more than Wes, Ryan or Kevin. Dave Hart is playing it close to the vest and I guarantee that we'll hear the coach's name first from W/R/K before we hear it from Basilio. And I guarantee he'll take all the credit no matter who it is. So will @Feelslike98, @8thmaxim, @sabanochio, @JimmyHyams and all the other guys that don't know what in the hell is going on.

    This post has been edited 2 times, most recently by threesdown on 11/22/2012 at 9:03 PM

    threesdown

  • The only thing I believe right now is that there are some big money boosters who want Gruden badly and that Hart isn't being as buddy/buddy with them as Mike Hamilton was. Aside from Hyams yesterday no one has had anything firm enough to take a real position on the subject, and Jimmy still left himself an escape hatch. They're all just in the precautionary "I'll believe it when I see it" mode that is the default for any sort of major move like this until it actually happens.

    Plus, even with Hamilton and an AD that leaked information like a sieve there were four or five miscalls during the last coaching search by guys who actually do this for a living. Who knows how this will turn out.

    JPSke

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