As new Lions coach Jim Caldwell puts together his staff, one potential hire could make a lot of Michigan fans a little twitchy.
According to Pat McManamon of ESPN.com, former Ohio State coach Jim Tressel is close to Caldwell, and a source close to Tressel said a deal to bring him to the Lions staff had been agreed to, pending front office approval.
That might be a little tougher to obtain, since Lions president Tom Lewand is Michigan graduate.
“If it helps us win, I will tattoo a Buckeye on my forehead,” Lewand said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.
(See, it’s funny because Ohio State and tattoos.)
Caldwell had Tressel on his Colts staff for a year, and the two are close friends. But Caldwell downplayed it when asked about Tressel, who is now working as an administrator at Akron.
“I’m not going to start talking about staff at this point in time until we kind of get it narrowed down, but I can tell you in regard to Jim, I think he’s very, very happy doing what he’s doing right now,” Caldwell said. “He’s enjoying it, he’s having a great time. He’s a great man. Very, very capable, and obviously you know that he worked with us in Indy as well. But I think he’s pretty comfortable where he is right now.”
That may be the case, but if Tressel’s ever going to return to coaching, Caldwell’s staff might be the spot.