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Jones hiring leaves Tennessee fanbase in a frenzy
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The search for the next head coach of the University of Tennessee football team is over.Shortly after lunch Friday, Butch Jones became the new leader of the Volunteers, taking over for Derek Dooley after athletic director Dave Hart searched for 19 days.Jones, who has coached at Central Michigan and Cincinnati, called the UT position his “dream job,” at his opening press conference.While Jones may be living the dream, the hire was viewed as a nightmare for many Vol faithful.Tennessee swung and missed at the biggest fish, Super Bowl winner and current ESPN analyst Jon Gruden, and smaller fish like Louisville coach Charlie Strong and Oklahoma State head man Mike Gundy.Reports came out that money wasn’t an issue when attracting a coach - UT reportedly offered Strong a salary starting at $4 million a year - so why exactly did the Vols have to settle on a coach most view as the school’s fifth or sixth choice?Other SEC schools had little trouble attracting a coach. Before Wisconsin could finish celebrating its third Rose Bowl berth, Arkansas had hired away Badger head coach Bret Bielema. Auburn brought back Gus Malzahn, the architect of the offense that led the Tigers to the 2009 National Championship.