Butch Jones' picture finally coming down from Neyland Stadium video board
Breathe easy, Tennessee fans. former coach Butch Jones will no longer be looking over you from the Neyland Stadium video board.
Despite his November firing, an image of Jones has remained on the outside of the video board. The work to get Jones off the video board is beginning on Monday, according to a Tennessee spokesperson.
Why the heck has Tennessee waited so long to get Jones off the stadium? Well, it’s kind of complicated. Jones’ image is on the board with pictures of Robert Neyland, the stadium’s namesake, and Reggie White. And those pictures are big. Really, really big.
The Vol Network is officially in charge of what’s on the back of the video board. And each picture is approximately 30 feet by 30 feet, meaning Tennessee needed to find a very high-resolution image to replace Jones’ picture.
Size isn’t the only issue either. The video board is atop the stadium, so a crane is necessary for the swap to take place. Tennessee’s chancellor said in January that a crane had been ordered.
Jones’ picture was first put on the video board in October of 2014. He was hired at Tennessee before the 2013 season and ended up with a career 34-27 record with the school. Former Alabama defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt was hired to take Jones’ place after a dramatic and circuitous coaching search.
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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.
