June Jones is either staying at SMU or still being considered by Arizona State, according to a pair of somewhat conflicting reports. Whether or not that his return to SMU would have been his preference, anyway was something less than clear, as reports had previously surfaced that Jones was not very popular among Sun Devils boosters.
If Jones is still being considered by the Sun Devils, it would seem to say more their ability to land a bigger name coach than about their love of the one-time Atlanta Falcons coach. Among the coaches they have reportedly considered are Jim Mora Jr., Southern Miss coach Larry Fedora, Baylor coach Art Briles and Houston coach Kevin Sumlin.
Any of those coaches woud probably be at least slightly preferable to Arizona State, but they are also getting interest from other, arguably more attractive, teams. Sumlin and Fedora, for instance, have already reportedly interviewed with Texas A&M.
If the Sun Devils do end up with Jones, it would hardly be the end of the world. In each of his past two stops, Jones took teams that were among the worst in all of college football and turned them into perfectly respectable teams. In Arizona State, he would have a far less daunting mountain to climb.
For more on the Sun Devils, check out Arizona State blog House Of Sparky. Here's our 2011 Coaching Carousel Tracker.