DETROIT — Cincinnati has lured another football coach from Central Michigan.
A person familiar with the negotiations said Wednesday that Chippewas coach Butch Jones has agreed to a 5-year deal with the Bearcats to replace Brian Kelly. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the contract had not been signed.
This marks the second time in three years that the Bearcats turned to the Mid-American Conference school for their head coach. They hired Kelly after a three-year stay at Central Michigan, where his spread offense was one of the nation’s best.
Jones then succeeded Kelly at Central Michigan, keeping the high-powered offensive approach while building on his success. Central Michigan won the MAC title this season by beating Ohio and finished the season at No. 25, its first national ranking.
Central Michigan athletic director David Heeke, who said two weeks ago he expected other schools to ask for permission to interview Jones, did not return a message seeking comment.
Cincinnati (12-0) moved quickly to replace Kelly, who accepted Notre Dame’s coaching job last Thursday. Offensive coordinator Jeff Quinn, who has been Kelly’s assistant for the last 22 years, said Tuesday he hoped to get the job even though he had no head coaching experience.
Quinn was promoted to interim coach when Kelly left, given responsibility for getting the Bearcats ready to face Florida in the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day. The Bearcats are scheduled to resume practice Thursday.
It’s unclear whether Jones would coach Cincinnati in its bowl game. The Chippewas will play Troy in the GMAC Bowl on Jan. 6.
Jones’ offensive philosophy and his familiarity with the Big East worked in his favor. He was an offensive coordinator at Central Michigan before moving to West Virginia as an assistant to Rich Rodriguez in 2005-06. When Kelly left for Cincinnati, he got his job at Central Michigan.
While Jones was at West Virginia, the Mountaineers had one of the nation’s top offenses. Next season, Cincinnati will return the nucleus of an offense that is one of the nation’s best.
Jones was a candidate to replace Rodriguez at West Virginia two years ago after winning his first MAC title, then Central Michigan responded by giving him a two-year extension. The school recently offered him a five-year contract to stay in Mount Pleasant, Mich.
Marshall was also interested in hiring Jones away from the Chippeawas this month.
Heeke said he expected to get phone calls from other schools after Central Michigan beat the Frank Solich-led Bobcats in the MAC championship game.
“I take it as a compliment when people want to talk to your coach,” Heeke said two weeks ago. “It’s been well documented that if you can have success in this league — as Butch has — you’re a good football coach because you have to do a lot with a little.”
Associated Press Sports Writer Joe Key in Cincinnati contributed to this report.
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