The list of public denials when it comes to coaches' interest in replacing Will Muschamp as Florida Gators head coach has two more names on it - Notre Dame's Brian Kelly and Clemson's Dabo Swinney.
Kelly didn't exactly deny the rumors directly, but used a ton of sarcasm to get his point across.
“I’m going to Florida — in about two weeks to get some sun,” Kelly told WNDU.com when asked about a potential move from South Bend to Florida, via NBC's College Football Talk. “I’m getting out of here with this weather. What are you, kidding me? So you can write that down. I’m going to Florida. Write it down now, get it out there get it on the news waves.”
It only got better when reporters asked him directly if he was interested in the opening in Gainesville.
“Oh yeah. I’ve been interested in the Florida job,” Kelly said. “What else am I up for anything else? Can I be up for the Notre Dame job? Because we are 7-3 right now, [and] I’m hoping to hold on to this job.”
Swinney, to his credit, was a lot more direct in his denial.
“The more you sit around and talk about that kind of stuff, the more of a distraction it is,” Swinney said. “I love my job. I just signed a long-term contract because of that. And this is a place that’s special to me. And I’ve invested a lot here. My focus is 100 percent on winning here.”
No currently active head coach is going to express interest in a job with the season still going, so it would be wise to take these denials with a grain of salt. However, expect prominent coaches to continue facing these questions until the Gators job is ultimately filled.
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