Tennessee football struck out again. Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Mike Gundy has reportedly turned down the Volunteers.
Related Story: 20 coaches who would be better hires than Schiano
It was fun while it lasted. However, it looks like Tennessee football will miss out on its other exciting and potential home run hire.
According to late night reports, Mike Gundy has turned down the Vols’ offer to stay with Oklahoma State. This came despite the reports that he would wait until Wednesday to make the decision.
College Football Insider Brett McMurphy reported the news Tuesday night.
Sources: Mike Gundy has decided to remain at Oklahoma State. He met w/Tennessee officials Tuesday in Dallas. Gundy reportedly had a 6-year, $42 million deal from Tennessee, but will remain at his alma mater https://t.co/m1igbKIEpx
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) November 29, 2017
Mike Gundy then appeared to affirm that with this tweet.
Cowboy For Life! #GoPokes #okstate
— Mike Gundy (@CoachGundy) November 29, 2017
Given those two tweets, it’s a pretty safe bet that Gundy has once again turned down Tennessee football. However, that’s not a reason for Vols fans to panic.
There are still plenty of other good offers out there, from Bobby Petrino Jeff Brohn to Mike Leach to Lane Kiffin to, yes, Tee Martin. All of them are better hires than Greg Schiano would have been.
So although this rejection stings once again, Tennessee is still not in bad shape whatsoever. It’s not even December yet, so why panic? Plenty of other coaches are on the market, and plenty of them would succeed at a high level in Knoxville.
Their next pick should probably be Brohm, who’s a younger version of Petrino without the baggage. That guy turned around the Purdue Boilermakers in a heartbeat, and he could immediately begin to win in Knoxville.
Again, the loss of Gundy stings. He would have been a huge hire for Rocky Top. But that’s no reason for Tennessee football fans to panic. Plenty of other coaches could make the Vols great once again.