Oklahoma Sooners head coach Lincoln Riley is a hot candidate for a number of premiere coaching jobs. The 35-year-old head coach has even been mentioned as a potential candidate for multiple NFL gigs like the Cleveland Browns and Dallas Cowboys. So could Riley ultimately make the move from college to the pros?
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones recently sounded off on the possibility.
While it has been noted that Riley could be a top candidate if the Cowboys move on from head coach Jason Garrett, Jones says that any reports on the possibility are pure speculation.
“That would be total drawing it out of the air,” Jones said during an appearance on 105.3 The Fan. “Totally speculation.”
Jerry Jones on @1053thefan on having any interest in Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley: "That would be total drawing it out of the air. … Totally speculation."
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) November 13, 2018
Dallas currently sits at 4-5 on the season, but Garrett earned some wiggle room with a big win over the NFC East rival Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night. Riley, meanwhile, has previously commented on a possible move to the NFL.
Riley spoke to the media on Monday, October 27 shortly after the Browns fired Hue Jackson.
“The truth is for me, I love Oklahoma,” Riley said at his weekly press conference, via NewsOK.com. “I love coaching here. I love coaching college football. I certainly don’t have that itch right now.
“I don’t know that I ever will. But I’m never going to be a guy that stands up here and say no way, no how with any of these things ever happening. I don’t know that. But I know right now I could care less about the NFL. We’re trying to win this game. And trying to make a run we all think we have in us right now.”
Of course, that is the right thing for Riley to say in the middle of a season where his team is competing for a College Football Playoff berth.
