Tennessee Names Cincinnati’s Butch Jones as Next Head Coach

Butch Jones will become the University of Tennessee’s 24th head football coach, departing the University of Cincinnati after three seasons.

The 44-year-old will be introduced at an afternoon news conference on the Knoxville, Tennessee, school’s campus, it said on its website.

The hiring, which came after Jones turned down an offer to coach at Colorado, includes a six-year contract, ESPN reported.

Jones resigned, effective immediately, Cincinnati Athletic Director Whit Babcock said on the school’s website.

“I would like to thank Butch Jones for his time at the University of Cincinnati,” Babcock said in a statement. “With that said, we are excited about the future of this program and this job will be extremely attractive nationally. Our search will begin immediately.”

Jones replaces Derek Dooley, who was fired Nov. 18 following a 41-18 loss at Vanderbilt that left the Volunteers at 4-7 for the season. Offensive coordinator Jim Chaney was the interim head coach for the season finale, a 37-17 win over Kentucky.

Cincinnati tied for first place in Big East Conference play the past two seasons. After a 10-3 finish last season, the Bearcats are 9-3 this year with an invitation to play Duke in the Belk Bowl on Dec. 27 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Jones went 23-14 at Cincinnati and is 50-27 in six years as a head coach, having also led Central Michigan from 2007-2009.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mason Levinson in New York at mlevinson@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Michael Sillup at msillup@bloomberg.net

Butch Jones will become the University of Tennessee’s 24th head football coach, departing the University of Cincinnati after three seasons.Photographer: Jared Wickerham/Getty Images