Fire up the Grumor Mill! Fans call for Arkansas to hire Jon Gruden after Sam Pittman firing
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
No college football coaching carousel would be complete without Jon Gruden’s name being brought up. That was the case on Sunday after Sam Pittman was fired by Arkansas five games into his 6th season in charge.
The typical disclaimer is apropos here: Gruden hasn’t coached at the college level since 1991, when he served as the wide receivers coach at Pitt. He eventually became an NFL head coach, first with the then-Oakland Raiders and later with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he won a Super Bowl. He later returned to the Raiders after nine seasons as the lead color commentator on ESPN’s “Monday Night Football.”
The program Gruden’s been linked to the most for a possible collegiate head coaching gig has been Tennessee. He was a graduate assistant under Johnny Majors in 1986 and 1987 and met his wife at the university.
Obviously, nothing to this day has panned out for Gruden and the college ranks. And, despite being closely linked to Tennessee over the years, could he eventually make his way to the SEC after all — but with Arkansas? If some fans have their way, the answer is yes.
Here’s some of the social media chatter surrounding the potential of Jon Gruden being named the Razorbacks’ head coach:
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
