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Jon Gruden didn’t specify when, but he said on a podcast on Friday he came close to taking the Tennessee head coaching job years ago.
The longtime NFL head coach recently made the move back into the media space, accepting a position with Barstool Sports. On Friday, he made his debut appearance on the outlet’s flagship podcast, Pardon My Take. During that show, Gruden revealed that he once considered taking the Tennessee job but, at the time, didn’t want to give up his role on Monday Night Football.
“My wife cheered at Tennessee. I love Tennessee. I was a graduate coach there, and I did talk to the Athletic Director,” Gruden said. “And I don’t look up to anybody more than I look up to Peyton Manning and Kenny Chesney. Those are two of my favorite Tennessee guys. And I was very interested in doing it. At that time I was having so much fun on Monday Night Football with Mike Tirico I couldn’t take any other job.”
Gruden worked for ESPN from 2009-17. He and Tirico worked together on Monday Night Football from 2009-15. Gruden would have been in his first year with the network when Tennessee hired Derek Dooley. In 2012, Dooley was fired and eventually replaced with Butch Jones.
“To be in the thought process is always exciting,” Gruden said. “Tennessee was one that is really close to my heart. I almost did consider pulling the trigger there.”
Gruden eventually returned to the NFL in 2018, accepting a job with the Oakland Raiders. He resigned from the position amid controversy in 2021. Over the course of his career, he went 117-112 and led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a Super Bowl title in 2002.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
