Jon Gruden ‘preparing myself as always to coach’ amid hiring rumors

While Bill Belichick hasn’t exactly made the case that head coaches transitioning from the NFL to college have an easy time of it, Jon Gruden could be the next test subject in that experiment.

Gruden, who has been out of coaching since 2021, when he resigned from the Las Vegas Raiders, due to a scandal over racist, misogynistic, and homophobic emails leaked amid the NFL’s investigation into Dan Snyder and the Washington Commanders, has been laying the groundwork for a return to the sidelines in recent months.

While still involved in legal proceedings with the NFL, Gruden has made it clear that he’s open to a return to college football, although his last experience at that level was in 1991.

On Friday’s episode of Pardon My Take, the Super Bowl winner didn’t discuss specific openings or possibilities but admitted he has been preparing himself for a return to the sidelines.

“I absolutely love football,” Gruden, who has been working for Barstool Sports since 2024, said. “I love it, and it’s pretty much all I have. I have an office, for the people who don’t know, I’ve got a server in there. I just put a lot of money into a server that collects all the film and allows me to study them. Who knows what will happen, but I’m preparing myself as always to coach. But, behind the scenes, we’re getting plenty of football. I promise you.”

The opening at Arkansas has generated the most buzz for Gruden, with Brett Favre throwing his support behind the school hiring him.

The SEC would suit Gruden just fine. “I’d die to coach in the SEC,” he told Georgia players in August.

While some media members see Gruden as a fit for the modern college football landscape, others are skeptical of his ability to succeed in that space.