Chip Kelly Changes Mind On Bucs Job, Will Stay At Oregon

Chip Kelly The Only One Reporting Chip Kelly Never Changed His Mind

Chip Kelly Nearly Leaving For Bucs Had Oregon AD 'Concerned'

While Oregon Ducks fans have hopefully regained their composure after Chip Kelly nearly left for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers job late Sunday night, it's time to check in with athletic director Rob Mullens. At a Monday presser, Mullens said he has full faith in Kelly's "unfinished business" statement, but admits he did start to worry a little bit at points in the weekend:

"One thing about Chip is he's very genuine and so when he says he has unfinished business I think in the end he probably weighed it all out and that's exactly what it was," he said ...

"I'm a realist by nature so there we're some times I was concerned that it was something that intrigued him and it would be something that he wanted explore," Mullens said.

Mullens also said he doesn't have a replacement list ready to go in the event of Kelly's departure. Reports from Sunday had Oregon already looking into Boise St. Broncos coach Chris Petersen and TCU Horned Frogs coach Gary Patterson. Kelly was also worried about the future of his current Oregon coaching staff, most of whom he wouldn't be able to bring along with him to Tampa Bay.

Visit Oregon blog Addicted to Quack and Bucs blog Bucs Nation for more on the parties involved.

Chip Kelly On Tampa Bay Buccaneers Job: 'I Have Unfinished Business'

Sunday night, news broke that Oregon Ducks coach Chip Kelly was steps away from taking the Tampa Bay Buccaneers job. What started as farfetched became more and more believable as confirmations came in from both coasts, with late-night reports having Kelly just about to sign. Then, at the last moment, he reportedly changed his mind.

Days away from college football's national signing day, when high school players can officially begin signing up to play for college teams, Kelly's got some clarifying to do on just how committed he is to Oregon for the near future. Unless he can convince the public he's no longer interested in a NFL job (despite multiple reports that he's had it with all the non-football responsibilities entailed in working a college job), he'll have one issue to overcome in future recruiting (not to mention this year's recruiting).

Here's Kelly:

I am flattered by the interest of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' organization. I enjoyed meeting with the Glazer family and General Manager Mark Dominik but after numerous discussions, I concluded that I have some unfinished business to complete at the University of Oregon.

Also, athletic director Rob Mullens issued a comment:

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers asked for permission to engage in conversation with Coach Kelly, which was granted. The University of Oregon is one of the nation's preeminent college football programs and, as such, it comes as no surprise the NFL is interested in our personnel. We are pleased with Coach Kelly's decision to remain as our head coach. Coach Kelly has provided great leadership and remains committed to building on our position among the elite college football programs in the country.

Check out SB Nation's Bucs Nation for more on the Bucs and visit Addicted To Quack for an Oregon perspective on all of this.

PHOTO: Here's How Close Chip Kelly Came To Being The Next Bucs Coach

Chip Kelly Turns Down Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Will Stay On As Oregon Football Coach

There was quite a bit of scuttlebutt on Sunday night when reports began to surface that Chip Kelly was leaving the Oregon Ducks football program to coach the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Kelly won't be leaving one of the best jobs in college football to take over a struggling Bucs franchise, however, according to a statement from the NFL team.

The rumors that Kelly was close to a deal with Tampa Bay were apparently true, but the Bucs general manager told the Tampa Bay Times on Monday morning that Kelly is no longer a candidate after he turned them down due to a love for college football.

"His heart is with college football and Oregon and he's no longer being considered,'' Bucs general manager Mark Dominik said Monday.

According to the report from the Times, Dominik delayed his plans on traveling to the Senior Bowl on Monday as he closed in on a deal with Kelly. Once the news broke on Sunday night, though, the newspaper reports that "Kelly reversed course and told the Bucs he was remaining at Oregon."

It was quite the whirlwind 12 hours, wasn't it?

Check out SB Nation's Bucs Nation for more on the Bucs and visit Addicted To Quack for an Oregon perspective on all of this.

Chip Kelly Reportedly Changes Mind, Will Stay At Oregon

Chip Kelly has reportedly reversed course abruptly, turning down the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to stay at Oregon, this according to Adam Jude of the Oregon Register-Guard. Kelly had reportedly agreed to terms with the Buccaneers to become the team's next head coach -- reported by Jude and confirmed by CBSSports.com -- before the sudden change of heart.

Here's what Jude had to say in a quick blog post detailing the events of the night.

The source told The Register-Guard earlier Sunday night that Kelly had reached an agreement to become Tampa Bay's head coach. "It's done," the source said.

An hour later, Kelly changed his mind, telling the source: "I'm staying."

Kelly has remained silent publicly, despite the swirling rumors and reports of his departure for Tampa Bay. KGW in Portland initial reported Kelly was close to a deal, and the Tampa Bay Times followed by confirming the report from their end. Late Sunday night, Jude and the Register-Guard reported the deal was done.

Now, it appears Kelly is staying at Oregon, if the latest reports are true. We'll be back with more as it becomes available.

Visit SB Nation's Addicted To Quack for the Oregon perspective on Chip Kelly's wild ride, and SB Nation's Bucs Nation for more on the Bucs and their coaching search.

Chip Kelly, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Reportedly Agree To Terms

Chip Kelly has agreed to terms with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and will be announced as the team's next head coach, according to a report from the Register-Guard's Adam Jude. Citing an athletic department source, Jude is reporting the deal is done, though nothing has been announced by the Buccaneers.

Rumors of Kelly's departure for Tampa Bay began to swirl on Sunday evening, spurred on by a report from KGW in Portland. From there, the rumors snowballed, with the Tampa Bay Times confirming that Kelly and the Bucs were close to finalizing a deal. As the night wore on, more reports continued to trickle in, each indicating Kelly was NFL-bound, barring a last-minute snag.

Jude also added players and assistants were not told of Kelly's plans as all of this unfolded.

One member of the team told The Register-Guard the players have been left "in the dark" about Kelly's intentions. Players were instructed Sunday night to attend the team's scheduled conditioning workouts today, according to a source.

Kelly led the Ducks to an incredible amount of success during his tenure at the helm, including an appearance in the BCS Championship game and two Rose Bowl game appearances -- the second of which resulted in a victory over Wisconsin this January -- in his three years as head coach.

We'll be back with more as it becomes available.

EDIT: Kelly has reportedly changed his mind and will stay at Oregon.

Check out SB Nation's Bucs Nation for more on the Bucs and visit Addicted To Quack for an Oregon perspective on all of this.

Chip Kelly To Bucs Could Mean Oregon Turns To Chris Petersen, According To Report

So let's say the Oregon Ducks do lose head coach Chip Kelly to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It's far from official at this point, and reports from both sides of the aisle only have the two sharing interest in each other, not poised to sign anything. But let's just say Kelly leaves. Leaving aside the issue of just how hard UO may be about to get hammered by the NCAA for the Willie Lyles adventure or otherwise, to whom do the Ducks turn?

Register-Guard beat writer Adam Jude has a familiar name: Boise St. Broncos coach Chris Petersen.

@AdamJude_RG If Chip leaves, source close to Oregon says Ducks will immediately target Boise State's Chris Petersen.

Petersen has been a hot name for virtually every major open job for years now. He reportedly turned down both the UCLA Bruins and Penn St. Nittany Lions just this year before signing a contract extension that also brought him a raise. While a move to Oregon would keep him in a familiar region, and Nike could pony up as much money as anybody in the country, it's not easy to imagine Petersen leaving for Oregon without clear assurances the NCAA will stay far away, if he did have any interest in ever leaving Boise for anywhere anyway. So many qualifiers!

This is all contingent on Kelly even leaving for the Bucs in the first place, which still seems like a longer shot than reports suggest.

Check out SB Nation's Bucs Nation for more on the Bucs and visit Addicted To Quack for an Oregon perspective on all of this.

Chip Kelly To Buccaneers Is Getting Close, According To Multiple Reports

Chip Kelly is close to finalizing a deal that will make him the new head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after three years as the head coach at Oregon.

Chip Kelly To Buccaneers Rumors Definitely Just Rumors At This Point

KGW News Channel 8 in Portland, Oregon is reporting that Oregon football head coach Chip Kelly is close to finalizing a deal to become the Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach. So far, no one is backing up the TV station. They're the only one with the report and no other media outlets are "confirming" the report. Thus, it's highly suspect at the moment.

One Oregon beat writer says he's heard the same rumors but they're just that -- rumors. Peter King also floated the story to Tony Dungy, who has a son on Oregon's team, and he didn't know. It's also important to note where we are in the recruiting cycle, with 10 days until high school seniors sign letters of intent.

(And, really, the Glazers are going to outbid Phil Knight?)

Kelly initially joined Oregon in 2007 as offensive coordinator before getting the head coaching gig in 2009. Prior to that he was at New Hampshire since 1994 coaching running backs, offensive linemen and finally an offensive coordinator. The Ducks reached a BCS bowl in all three years Kelly was head coach.

Visit SB Nation's Bucs blog, Bucs Nation, for more on this from a Tampa Bay perspective. For an Oregon perspective, visit Addicted To Quack.