Hubbs quote below validates no contract, and no meeting as I said earlier. I don't necessarily want it to be true, but it is.
"There will be no afternoon press
conference today for a new football coach at the University of
Tennessee, nor was Jon Gruden ever presented with
any contract or financial details to become the Volunteers' next
football coach. So say sources extremely close to UT's search for Derek Dooley's replacement.
Some half-dozen sources have told VolQuest.com this morning that Gruden both
declined an offer to meet with UT officials, most notably vice
chancellor and director of athletics Dave Hart,
this week and that neither side ever got to a point where a financial
framework was outlined."
My friend says Fedora is next. Onwards.
We are losing mega millions per year with a fledgling and dying program.......Not saying that Gruden is 100% guaranteed, but he puts butts in seats at the minimum.
You give him what he wants. The payoff far outweighs the risk.
We are losing mega millions per year with a fledgling and dying program.......Not saying that Gruden is 100% guaranteed, but he puts butts in seats at the minimum.
You give him what he wants. The payoff far outweighs the risk.
Fedora has been preliminarily interviewed. So have Golden, Fisher, and Davis. Golden is supposedly working through things with Miami to sort out some new terms due to Miami's not sharing some NCAA violations (ethics breach in escape clause). Fisher is in a championship game and Hart will only do a full interview after seeking AD permission. So the only available follow up is with Fedora. I assume others will now get preliminary interviews as well. globadoc- You are correct. "reported on" may be too strong. "blogged about" would be more accurate- in MR SEC, etc.
slowly but surely we're inching our way back in to the same position we found ourselves in when kiffy left...wow!!!uke5:
Fair point Decker. I only know it did not come from the AD. My friend's assumption is that it is pressure from a subset of the boosters. Definitely not proven. Doc- I am not sure what you don't believe. I'm passing along what I've heard. Not only has what he has said about this situation been true, but also that of Golden, Fedora etc. After he said Golden was trying to exit via his escape clause on an ethics grounds, that was reported, and Miami countered to get him to stay. After he said Fedora would be interviewed, he was. That too was later reported. Everyone told me I was nuts when I conveyed JG would have demands higher than any other coach because he was represented by BL. This came true. I am not sure all of this will end up in a deal if they strike one, but I do believe they are really asking for these items.
Latest: "100% off. Communication shut down. No one thinks it is recoverable."
Spoke to my friend just now (formerly worked for Lamonte)You can peruse my previous threads for further background. Please remember: I am sharing info to be helpful, not attacking your religion. I am a UT fan, my friend is indifferent to UT's success, but more connected to the day to day than the reporters who originally shared this info.
Things he knows 100%:
There is no contract. There is not even an MOU. There has been an OFFER LETTER extended, and terms have been discussed, but not agreed to. As we will all recall, coaches almost never receive a drafted contract until months after they begin their job, and usually don't even sign them for months, if not years due to their complexity and the back and forth. There is no contract. There is no MOU. There is an offer letter.
UT's most recent terms (as of Tuesday) EXCEEDED Gruden's requested staff salary.
JG (through BM) has requested some things that make Cheek/Hart uncomfortable. They include: Staff negotiation, hiring and firing of staff (normally a function performed by the AD), Scheduling out of conference opponents (normally a function performed by the AD), staff incentives and bonuses (not normally part of a deal like this). He also wants to choose UT brand endorsements for the university, and wants the freedom to do endorsements himself (ones that do not acknowledge him as the UT coach). Also JG wants a long list of (non-causal) related reasons why he can leave UT, but won't be pinned down to any success metrics that give UT an out (Hart's counter).
While Haslam and others have stayed out of the fray, some other very vocal boosters have told BM and Jon that they will get what they want. This is like baby deer giving a wolf permission to lick it as long as there is "no biting". Hart is now in a terrible spot. If he takes this deal, he is betting his career that this arrangement will be a miracle cure, and will have done so with terms unheard of in any other college deal. It will be "his deal" whether he likes the terms or not. If he does not take the deal, the fan base will be furious, and it will be very hard to carry on the search without paying another coach way too much money. The bar has been set so high that even a lesser hire, will bring disproportionally high dollars to his deal.
There is still a pending request from AD for an in person sit down by today at 5. Yesterday's developments do not reflect new terms from AD. They reflect new pressure being exerted by boosters. Hart's plan to use the 5pm deadline today is now wrecked. Expect someone to deny the "contract" report as they will be able to be honest in saying that there isn't one as they talk through the last terms of the offer letter.
Again- I don't have a horse in the race. I only hope we get the best coach for the program. I do fear the risk, but it is what it is. I will ask my friend some more specific questions via email before lunch, and report back.
Fedora just finished his /first/ year at UNC, correct? He'd be a d--k to stiff the heels after one year--and would probably have to pony up some serious dough, no? Seems unlikely.
I like Strong's credentials in every way. Has head coaching experience; has had serious jobs at big programs--nd, south carolina, florida (dc). Has defensive expertise--that's where good teams start and finish, guys--see bama. Has recruiting contacts in florida. Unlike Fishe, Strong knows the SEC and what it takes to win in the SEC. A pretty damn good package, IMO.