Clemson HC Brad Brownell does terrible job shooting down Indiana rumors

Clemson basketball is having a historically-good season and, of course, nothing can come completely easy as the Tigers' 18-2 record in ACC play was just short of their first title in decades.

On top of that, it seems like whenever a coach at a non-blue blood program has a great season, he's immediately rumored for an opening elsewhere. Such is the case with Clemson's Brad Brownell who has been with the program for 15 years. And yet, he's subject to some poaching rumors.

Being an Indiana native, Brownell probably grew up watching the Hoosiers and now that Indiana will have a vacancy at head coach following the season, it would make sense for him to head home.

Right?

Well, Brownell was asked about these rumors on Wednesday and his answer was filled with coachspeak. He did a horrendous job of calming Clemson fans' nerves and shooting down the rumors.

"I'm not going to talk about potential jobs; I have a great job," Brownell said. "And I'm 100 percent focused on this team and what we've got ahead of us."

Brownell went on to say that he he's "grateful" that he's doing good things and that he's never been a self-promoter and it's because he loves Clemson. While those seem like the right things to say, he didn't say anything to the tune of "I'm not taking any other jobs" or "I will be back next year" or anything to that extent.

Of course, you can't expect a coach to shoot down every rumor because, well, this is a business. If Indiana comes in and throws him an offer he can't refuse, he'd look silly saying "I will be back" and then leaving -- we've seen it before across all sports.

And it's not like he has to shoot down rumors. He's a grown adult, he's allowed to play the vague card when asked about rumors of him being a candidate for a top job. I'd do the same thing.

But Clemson fans can't act surprised if he does take this Indiana job because he left the door open.