In the end, the wooing was too great for Butch Jones to resist.
Reportedly. Maybe. Possibly. Or not even remotely the case. Take your pick.
Two days after interviewing in Colorado for its head-coaching vacancy, and a day after what was supposed to be D-Day, the Denver Post is reporting that Jones has accepted CU’s offer and will become the Buffs’ next head coach. The decision (?) reportedly came after a last-ditch effort Wednesday by Cincinnati to retain Jones.
At a press conference earlier in the day for the Bearcats’ Belk Bowl appearance, Jones stated that he expected to have a decision on his coaching future “pretty soon.”
Subsequent to the Post‘s report, however, Jones told Pete Thamel of SI.com that any talk of him accepting the CU job is “absolutely false,” so there’s that. Additionally, a Colorado spokesperson labeled the paper’s report “inaccurate” and the search for Jon Embree‘s successor continues.
When or even if Colorado will officially confirm the diverging developments and introduce their new head football coach, Jones or otherwise, is not yet known, with the current very vehement denials potentially serving as nothing more than semantics as it relates to i’s being dotted and t’s being crossed. Or potentially serving as an embarrassing case of premature speculation on the Post‘s part.
Jones has spent the past three seasons at Cincinnati, winning 19 games and sharing conference championships the past two years.