Gruden dismisses Tennessee rumors

Coach Jon Gruden made it clear he has no interest in the head coaching job at the University of Tennessee.

"I've said it from the beginning, this is the only job I've really ever wanted,'' Gruden said. "As long as the Glazers will have me, I'll be here. I've got a lot of respect for Tennessee. I grew up down there a little bit. My wife is from there. But this is where I want to be and I can only make myself that clear.''

Gruden would not entertain questions about whether he would ever have an interest in coaching college football.

"I don't even want to start that,'' Gruden said. "I've wanted to be in the NFL my whole life and this is something I'm really excited to do. This is where I want to be and I'll leave it at that.''

Comments

[Hayes]

Brett???? Is that you????

[Darren]

How could anyone move from the Bay Area to Knoxville? Like Gruden said, his wife is from there. She knows what it is like to live in them thar hills. That is why she is going to stay here as long as she can.

[George]

Darren, you have got to be kidding? I have been to the Bay area numerous times and it doesn't have ANYTHING on the East Tennessee area. With that being said state a fact that you know not something you speculate.

[DR]

You're excited about your job, but you suck at it buddy! You used to be good at it, but it's passed you by. I hope he's lying like Petrino and Saban. This would be a lie I accept with no problem.

[VInce]

This is the coaching version of the unfailing and riddled responses to the age old "Do I look fat in this dress" question. There's almost no point in asking!

[DR]

George, I agree. Take away the beaches from this area and it would be just a big crap hole. The cites in this area take no pride in maintaining itself. Not like the places I've been.

[DR]

Vince, Gruden does look fat in his dress! I'm just being honest!

[Frank]

Feel free to leave anytime Douche Rocket.

[Michael]

Of course Gruden is going to deny any speculation when his team is in the playoff hunt and there is still 7 weeks remaining in the regular season. We won't know until somebody is hired at Tennessee whose name is not Jon Gruden.

[Bob]

DR and George:

Please.....comparing Knoxville to the Bay area? I dont think Gru would prefer to live in a area where inbreeding is the norm, the best place to eat is Sonny's BBQ, and your only entertainment is watching Tennessee football or shooting guns at moving things.

[Jay]

Why any coach would go from a SuperBowl team and playoff contender in the NFL to the college ranks is beyond me. For as much as I'll fault Gruden's playcalling and personnel management, he's still 100x better than Al Groh, Steve Spurrier, Bobby Petrino and Charlie Weiss.

Besides, can you see Gruden doing the soft sell in some recruit's living room? His skills are in maximizing existing talent, not developing it.

DR u are an absolute idiot. Gruden is a fantastic coach and motivater. without him no trophy in 02. Also, Who is a better candidate that the bucs could pick up?

[mike]

Jon, please take the UT job. You stink as an NFL coach and UT stinks in general, it would be great match, two losers. Go to UT Jon, perhaps the Bucs can again become a contender.

[JK]

The Bucs finally win games having turnovers and rushers under 100 yards for a game. In the Dungy era no way we win unless everything goes perfect. Gruden is the perfect coach for this team. I don't care what DR or anyone else says. Coach has complete control of his players unlike Coach Owens and Jerry in Dallas. Although I am enjoying watching the Cowboys self-destruct after anointing themselves Super bowl champions in pre season. Dr dislikes the Bucs because he is jealous and secretly would love Gruden to coach his Cowboys. He would give them discipline which they really long for but don't have. DR, you may as well look somewhere else because the true Bucs fans and the Glazers will not let Gruden go anywhere. You can take that to the bank.

[Skibibitz]

Gee, Tennessee could get a bigger a-hole as head coach than the Gators (hard to believe, but true). But I doubt that even with Gruden, the Vols could beat the Gators.

[Bill]

There goes that moron DR again! He spends his life in front of the computer. I can't go on a Bucs blog with out seeing that looser with 5 entries. You are a broken record dumba... Get a job!!!!! Gurden could take you to the woodshed with both of his hands tied behind his back. Congratulations for being one of the most annoying armchair quaterbacks in the nation! GO BUCS!

[Tony M.]

I'm hesitant to defend Chuckie, because our team has been erratic as anything since he has been coach. It's been a roller coaster.

But in his defense, he has been a very good thing for our offense. Which is something we actually have now, and we never had under (I love him too) Tony Dungy.

Even though I don't believe a damn word he says to the press, I never see him coaching a college squad. If only the "Quarterback Developer" could find some young talent to lead us into the future. Maybe then we could find the consistency that great teams possess. Oh well, I'll just retreat back to my world of wistful dreaming.

[max]

Having lived in both places, I assure you that East Tennessee is much preferable to the Tampa Bay area. I LOVE the water surrounding this area, but that's really all TB has to offer. The people are rude and, away from the beaches, there is nothing pretty about the scenery. Give me Knoxville (or Greenville, or Birmingham, or Nashville, or Chattanooga) all day.

[Bob]

Max: Move back to Tennessee, Hillbilly.

[DR]

Hey guy please ignore all future comments from me as they are extremly stupid and ignorant .. I dont know why I post such drivell as I dont have the least bit of intelligence that would actually mean anything to anyone by the way... duuuuh what were we talking about???

[rmac]

Hey, now, let's not forget that the Tennessee Flaming Thumbtacks are doing VERY well this year. Personally, I love both places. Both offer something different. But I choose to LIVE in Florida and VACATION in Tennessee. If people like Tennessee better, it's a free country. Move back. This is the USA... no one will ask to see your papers.

[John]

Ask the Raiders if they wish they still had Gruden.

[Cousin Cletus]

that's right Darren ... that fella is right ... you all aint got nuthin' on East TN
we got a nascar racetrack and more overalls & mobil homes per capita than your beloved bay area ... and yeah, you might have more teeth & dentist per capita but you all can't touch us in terms of inbreedin' & twisted family trees

[Hardhat0038]

I'll tell you guys that don't want Gruden this, he keeps this team in contention every year.Period. Allen hs done wonders with the salary cap, something that seemed to elude Rich Allen, and we seem to be really moving forward as a team. Even the games we lost, there hasn't been a single blowout..all losses by seven or less. not much to criticize if you ask me..as a fan the only stat you should truly be worrying about is w's and l's, the rest of it isn't really any of your business. Just like going to the restaurant. As long as it tastes good, I don't quibble with the chef about technique and presentation,... you know what I'm sayin?.....

[Chucky]

Yeah...we won't give Gruden and Allen any credit for completely rebuilding an NFL roster...you know...since that happens all the time.

The Raiders sure are glad to have gotten rid of Gruden. Everything is going right there now!

Who exactly will the Bucs replace Gruden with if he is gone? Anyone? Nothing? Nobody? All I hear is silence?...hmmm.

Gruden haters are extremely entertaining.

[Edgar]

hey Hardhat0038, the Bucs should have the same record as the Titans. 3 losses against teams that are last in the league in total defense is unacceptable. It comes down to dumb play calling. That kind of stuff frustrates me. 3 losses (Saints,Broncos, and Cowboys) the following week those opponents get their butts kick. That comes to show you Gruden can be an idiot.

[aj]

Cowher.

Bucs were in contention every year with Dungy, wasn't good enough for him so why is it good enough for Gruden? Bucs haven't won a playoff game since 2002. Six years ago.

The team was consistently good under Dungy. Not so under Gruden, very up and down. For every division title he's won, he's also had a complete stinker of a season to go with it.

I was withholding judgment on playcalling, but now the players are calling him out on it. Just the other day I found Garcia's statements to be pretty damning of why this offense hasn't been able to spread the field and score points. He pointed to Gruden. Pittman's interview a few weeks ago was even more damning.

I'm not a Gruden hater, but he does vex me quite a bit. If Cowher was willing to take the job it would be an absolute no brainer. He's a better coach and a better fit for the current roster.

Is anyone actually stating that the Raiders aren't glad to have gotten rid of Chucky? If Holder can get the question with Al Davis, I'll put up a Benjamin against anyone who thinks he'll say it was a bad decision.

[Larry]

The idiots that want him gone never lived through the early years when we truly sucked.
The idiots that think Knoxville sucks never experienced a Vols football weekend. The Knoxville area is a great place to be.

[nick]

DR you fool, people dont forget how to do their jobs. What do you do for a living? did you ever forget how?
thats the dumbest thing Ive ever seen...
or MAYBE as hes getting the players finally, hes winning??

Gruden haters are scared, they have no where to go. The future is so bright, and gruden haters hate that.
SHUT UP!

Nick
REAL bucs fan since 79
not bandwagon since 97.

[nick]

DR you fool, people dont forget how to do their jobs. What do you do for a living? did you ever forget how?
thats the dumbest thing Ive ever seen...
or MAYBE as hes getting the players finally, hes winning??

Gruden haters are scared, they have no where to go. The future is so bright, and gruden haters hate that.
SHUT UP!

Nick
REAL bucs fan since 79
not bandwagon since 97.

[Jesse Henn]

Thank you, Nick; you said it about the GrudenHaters...twice! Gruden is going to be the Bucs coach for quite a while longer, barring a complete disaster in the next FEW YEARS. I defend Gruden as an NFL Coach, not that he hasn't made mistakes & made me wonder several times about his playcalling, & no matter what some players think of the him as a Coach, there are enough who have stayed in Tampa to make that quite misleading; his future is with the Buccaneers. He won a Super Bowl his 1st year with Tampa Bay. The Glazers paid a heavy price for the guy. As long as the Bucs compete in the postseason, no chance Gruden goes anywhere, especially not to take a college coaching job. Those who don't like him and/or don't want him to be Tampa's Coach are, eventually, going to have to accept it.

[DR]

To call 11 and 12 loss seasons competitive is beyond stupid. A competitive teams competes every year, not every other year.
I like what Herm edwards is doing in Kansas City. That is what you call rebuilding. He didn't bring in thirty somethings to rebuild his team, he's rebuilding with young players. Thigpen looks better and better every week. What do the Bucs got for a future QB? Nothing. What about WR? Nothing.
As far as Gruden, the only reason he will be around in a couple of years is because of cheap absent owners. They wouldn't buy out his contract if he went 0-16 this year. Billick had a far better record as Baltimore's head coach and he was fired.
The Bucs are competitive this year, but let's not kid ourselves, they are not super bowl contenders.

[Georgia Fan]

I like the north Georgia Mountains,myself.Just talking about sceanery and prefered living locations. GO Bucs!! I vote to keep Gruden.

[aj]

Just because you were a fan in the Bucco Bruce days does not mean you need to set the bar there. That's the good thing about now, expectations are higher. Excellence is expected. Would you really be happy if the team was 4-12 every year, because that's still twice as good as Lemon Bennett did? Ridiculous.

I've been around since the beginning, thank you, and I'm happy to root for the Super Bowl every year. I'm happy we have the greatest defensive legacy in league history. I'm glad I don't have to sit around and accept 12 loss seasons anymore.

So, please. Why do you hold Gruden to a lower expectation than Dungy? Why do you keep Gruden if we can't win a game in the playoffs in six years?

[Itch]

Why was my post removed? This is sensorship. Can't a Hillbilly boy poke fun at himself.

[atleastwehavebball]

Guys, it amazes me how stereotypes are kept going by people that have never been outside their area. Of all the responses, anyone that has ever been to East Tennessee and Florida, especially Tampa, picks East Tennessee hands down. That must tell you something. Obviously, if you can type in this blog you can do a little research. Tennessee, Knoxville in particular, has more eateries per capita than most. It is a nice place.

The more you bash something you obviously know nothing about, the more ignorant you look. To Bob, Darren, and the rest of the guys who haven't been further than 2 hours from their house but are more cultured than everyone else. . . I promise you my house in nicer, my wife is finer, I make more money than you, I speak with less of a twang than you do, I am smarter than you, and when I drop my kids off at school in the BMW your kids are pumping my gas when I leave.