Is Tennessee trying to hire another Butch Jones?
John Adams
Is Tennessee thinking about rehiring Butch Jones as its football coach?
Not exactly. But almost.
North Carolina State Dave Doeren could be the next target on UT’s list of candidates to replace Jones. Doeren probably started out about 63rd but has been moving up with every rejection.
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Tennessee’s troublesome search has gone on so long, anyone who says “yes” should now be considered a hiring coup. Even a coach who reminds you of the coach you just fired should be considered a coup.
Astute followers of UT football didn’t take long to see the similarities. On social media Wednesday night, they already were referring to Doeren as "Butch Jones 2.0."
Doeren got his head-coaching start at a MAC school just like Jones. Also, like Jones, he took over a program that already had been successful.
Jerry Kill won 10 games in his last season at N. Illinois. Doeren won 11 games in his first season (2011) and 12 in his second.
Remind you of anyone?
Brian Kelly's last Central Michigan team won nine games. Jones won 27 games in three seasons as Kelly’s successor.
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Jones and Doeren also have produced comparable results at Power 5 schools.
Jones’ best regular-season record at UT was 8-4. Doeren’s current team at N.C. State is 8-4, which is his best record at the school.
Jones was 14-24 in SEC play. Doeren is 15-25 in ACC play.
Jones’ last Tennessee team became the first one in school history to lose eight games. In fairness to Jones, he was fired before the last two losses.
Doeren’s first team at N.C. State lost nine games. That was the third team in school history to lose that many games.
One more thing: Neither Jones nor Doeren can beat Will Muschamp.
Jones was 0-4 against Muschamp, who beat the Vols first as Florida’s coach and more recently as South Carolina’s coach. Muschamp is 1-0 against Doeren after his Gamecocks upset the Wolfpack in the 2017 season opener.
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With all the Jones-Doeren similarities, you might be wondering if Doeren, like Jones, takes a brick-by-brick approach to building programs. If so, you probably are prepared to scream loud enough to shake Neyland Stadium.
Relax. I couldn’t find a single quote in which Doeren mentioned building a program “brick-by-brick.”
However, in a question-and-answer session with Wolfpacker, Doeren said: “We have a saying around here: ‘every man a brick and together, a wall.' We have a brick squad, and the brick-squad warrior is the guy that exemplifies all the things we embody in our workouts.”
Wonder why Jones never thought of that?
Tennessee fans also will be glad to know there’s no record of Doeren referring to his players as “Champions of Life” following a loss.
Nor have there been any divisional championships under Doeren at N.C. State. But that shouldn’t be a problem for Tennessee fans.
They’re used to that.
John Adams is a senior columnist. He may be reached at 865-342-6284 or john.adams@knoxnews.com. Follow him at: Twitter.com/johnadamskns.