When ASU met with SMU coach June Jones last weekend in Dallas, Love was there, but so too were Chief Operating Officer Steve Patterson and ASU President Michael Crow.
Multiple sources have told me that Patterson is the lead voice on ASU's search, not Love. (Don't jump to conclusions. Love, obviously, still is involved.)
After the weekend, there was speculation that ASU had changed its mind on SMU's June Jones, particularly because of the negative reaction from boosters and fans when word surfaced of Jones' candidacy. ASU may have slowed in its pursuit, but as of Tuesday, Jones was still in the mix to replace Dennis Erickson.
And one name that earlier this morning appeared to be crossed off as well, mainly due to the extreme opposition of boosters and alumni, was SMU head coach June Jones. As fate would have it, he is now very much back in play with ASU. The reasoning for this turn of events is that the school desires to land the proverbial big name after striking out with the aforementioned candidates. To say that this move is unpopular among the Sun Devil nation is a gross understatement and one that has already been well documented.
I used to love when people would say SMU is a stepping stone job. But no Coach has ever moved up. We finally got one of the biggest splash hires and after coaching at SMU, his name is tarnished. I bet ASU would have loved to snag him from Hawaii. Pony up!
I've actually heard from a source that not only is June Jones back on the table, but there is an offer to him and they are just working out the buyout details!!!!
Act fast Sun Devil Nation!
We need an email, text, phone campaign NOW. Drop what you're doing and slam the Athletic department with calls, emails, whatever!
ponydawg wrote:I used to love when people would say SMU is a stepping stone job. But no Coach has ever moved up. We finally got one of the biggest splash hires and after coaching at SMU, his name is tarnished. I bet ASU would have loved to snag him from Hawaii. Pony up!
Hayden Fry did pretty well for himself after SMU. Ron Meyer went on to the Patriots and the Colts. ....I'd call those moving up.