KNOXVILLE – The University of Tennessee is nearing a deal that would make Ohio State defensive coordinator Greg Schiano its next football coach, multiple media outlets reported Sunday.
USA Today Sports first reported Sunday afternoon that Tennessee was working to finalize a deal with Schiano.
Tennessee has not announced a hiring yet, and athletics department representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Sunday. The Volunteers’ season ended Saturday with a 42-24 loss to in-state rival Vanderbilt. The defeat ended UT’s year at 4-8, the first eight-loss season in program history.
First-year Tennessee athletic director John Currie fired fifth-year coach Butch Jones on Nov. 12 with two games still remaining on the scheduled and launched a nationwide search for Jones’ replacement.
The 51-year-old Schiano coached Rutgers from 2001 to 2011. Rutgers had not been to a bowl game since 1978 when Schiano took the job. He directed the Scarlet Knights to six bowl games in his final seven years there.