Former Tennessee Volunteers tight end Jason Witten addressed the criticism that he received earlier this year from UT football fans.
Earlier this offseason, Tennessee Vols legend Jason Witten received criticism from a small segment of UT football fans over what may have been the silliest “controversy” of the year.
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Witten, who was named the Oklahoma Sooners’ new tight ends coach in January, appeared on stage with Luke Combs at a concert at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman.
The former Vol repped his new employer at the concert, which didn’t sit well with some Tennessee fans since the Sooners are an SEC rival.
I said it May and I’ll say it again here: It’s silly for any Tennessee fan to be upset with Witten considering current Vols head coach Josh Heupel, an Oklahoma legend, repped UT when Combs visited Knoxville the previous week.
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Jason Witten responds to the criticism from Vols fans
Witten, who was inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame on Saturday, was asked about the criticism he received from Vols fans over the Combs concert.
“I learned a long long time ago playing for Dallas that you’ve got to block out the noise,” said Witten. “I’m sure I did get some backlash — I’m probably not aware of it. But I’m just a big fan of Luke. Obviously, [he’s] extremely talented, but [he’s an] even a better person. It’s always great to see those stars in the music industry be such humble people. And two, it was amazing. It was a concert there at Oklahoma, and that’s where I’m at now.
“I saw him the week before, some clips of him in Knoxville, and what an amazing place. But look, I think when you get into the coaching profession, that’s part of it. You move and go, and I’m extremely excited about the challenge of coaching in the SEC, and I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity and where that takes me. But listen, I mean, Tennessee’s always going to have a special place in my heart.”
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Witten may be a Sooner right now, but he’ll almost certainly have other stops in his coaching journey. He will always, however, be a Vol for life.
And I think the absolute majority of Tennessee fans understand that. It’s just the select few negative ones who happen to be the loudest.
This article was originally published on A to Z Sports. Read the full story here: Vols legend Jason Witten drops strong response to the criticism he received from Tennessee fans over a ridiculous controversy
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