We are a little over halfway through the 2017 college football season, and several coaches have already been terminated by their respective schools.
Which coach will get the axe next? ESPN Insider (subscription required) ranked college coaches on their chances to be fired based on their situations, and probably to little surprise, Tennessee's Butch Jones ranks among the Top 3 most likely to be given the pink slip.
According to the rankings, 57-percent of coaches with similar credentials to Jones have been fired, which trails only Kent State's Paul Haynes (92.9-percent) and Kansas' David Beaty (72.3-percent). Additionally, the article notes that there are "two independently trained models that combine to create the overall probability of being fired, and one of them says [Jones] has an 83 percent chance."
FanBuzz's Take
It's been long assumed that Tennessee coach Butch Jones would inevitably be fired by the end of the current season.
The Vols have been stuck in a tailspin since Week 1 and fans have expressed their displeasure. However, Jones remains employed despite two blowout losses to SEC rivals Alabama and Georgia, poorly coached losses to Florida and South Carolina and a nearly losing to a then 0-5 UMass team.
Sure, many have pointed out that the program improved between his second and fourth seasons, but it's taken a drastic decline back to irrelevance in his fifth year.
YEAR FIVE. At this point, the "brick by brick" process should have already built a mansion but instead it has become pile on the ground.
The narrative that Jones is an improvement from his predecessor Derek Dooley is an exaggeration. Dooley was the worst coach in Tennessee history, but Jones isn't far behind.
The only difference is that Jones benefitted from a weaker SEC East,— mind you that he failed to win the division title in numerous times — and benefited from many second-generation prospects wanting to play for the same team as their fathers (Kahlil McKenzie, Todd Kelly Jr., Nigel Warrior, Evan and Elliott Berry, etc.)
To argue that Jones is anything less because of a "9-win season" is being complacent with mediocrity. Historically, Tennessee is one of the best programs in SEC history and shouldn't be satisfied with being "competitive" at best.
But it's not even that anymore. This is an awful team right now and all of the blame has to be put on the coaching staff. I don't understand how many more times I have to write this before John Currie wakes up and does his job but a change needs to not only happen but happen immediately.
