Butch Jones isn't happy about the proposed HUNH rule changes

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"I’d like to have research and data before altering and changing the rules of the game," Jones told WNML radio in an exclusive interview earlier today. "I want to see data produced from an injury standpoint. I don’t want opinion. I want facts and figures. Show me the numbers."

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Some coaches – including Alabama’s Nick Saban and Arkansas’ Bret Bielema -- have argued that the hurry up offense is a safety concern for players. The more snaps, the more chance for injury. Jones isn’t so sure. He said he’s been a part of teams running a hurry-up offense since 2001 and he’s not seen an uptick in injuries in the last 20-25 plays of a game during that 12-year span. "I don’t think it comes down to a matter of safety," Jones said. "It’s a matter of personal preference. Every program has a style of play, just like every basketball team, from pressing to pushing the ball down the court. Same thing in football. That’s what makes this game; the strategy that goes behind it."

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Many argue that defensive players exert more energy than offensive players because defenders are taught to run to the football. Jones doesn’t buy it. "The way we play offense, we expect our guys to run to the football as well," Jones said. "We expect our offensive linemen to sprint to the football as well."

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"A lot more things need to be addressed with player safety than up-tempo offense," Jones said. "Let’s concern ourselves with real hard facts in moving the game forward." Jones does favor a proposal in which if replay shows a targeting foul that led to an ejection is reversed, the penalty can also be nullified. "I think it will be beneficial," Jones said. "It’s really hard to tell your player, `you know what, you made a good play and it wasn’t a penalty, but they’re still giving you a penalty."

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