I have a theory that productivity dropped dramatically in Tennessee workplaces last week.
Why? Because workers were too busy reading news reports about the pursuit of the next University of Tennessee football coach. All week, rumors swirled around ESPN analyst and former NFL coach Jon Gruden.
Vols fans are desperate for some good news after the Lane Kiffin disaster, followed by Derek Dooley’s first two lackluster years, then topped by this season’s implosion.
Web stats for the Times Free Press offer a glimpse of this – a record number of page views were recorded on Gruden stories during the daytime hours when lots of people are typically at their work computers.
We even joked in the newsroom about putting Gruden’s name in the headlines of all Web stories: “City Council approves stop signs, Gruden has no comment,” or to really jack up Web hits, simply say: “Powerball reaches record high, Gruden.” And we considered offering a reward to anyone who could realistically link Gruden and Kiffin in a headline. That would have melted the Internet.