According to Athlon:
1. Lack of college experience
2. An eye to the NFL?
3. Recruiting and building a coaching staff
4. The West Coast Offense
5. Difficult to play for?
5 Reasons Why Jon Gruden Would Be a Bad Fit at Tennessee | AthlonSports.com
The more I've thought about it, the more I'm "somewhat" skeptical of how effective *any* NFL head coach can be in the NCAA.
However....it's a risk I'm willing to take. The biggest example on that list I disagree with is #3. For one, I think name recognition alone will help recruiting immediately. Two, so long as Cheek, the University, and Hart stay out of the way, I think the staff he could/would build here would be the best staff we've had on the Hill in quite some time. Three, his work-ethic is second to none--the man sleeps 3 hours a night, every night, and is up by 3am studying film FOR MNF, I imagine that would translate to studying film for high school recruits and relentlessly pursuing top-flight talent.
His offense would need to be scaled back, IMO. There's a reason why he liked veteran QB's in the NFL, a la Brad Johnson & Rich Gannon--it's extremely complicated and would truly demand more than the 20 hours per work maximum he would have with college kids. However...I think it COULD work. He's a smart guy...the transition to the 'AA would call for changes in a lot of areas, and that's one area I believe he would modify for college kids.
As for #5--If people can play for Nick Saban, then people can play for Jon Gruden. I don't recall any stories out of Oakland or Tampa about him stepping over and strolling past a player who has passed out or was convulsing (can't recall the exact details but Saban DID do that).
The first two examples will work themselves out within the first 2 seasons he's here. IF (and that's a HUGE if) he does, in fact, coach here, we'll know whether he's here just for kicks or he's as long as we'll have him.