Charlie Strong Staying with Louisville Cardinals

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Charlie Strong will remain the football coach for the University of Louisville, he said Thursday morning in a news conference.

The University of Tennessee offered him the Volunteers' head coaching position on Tuesday, he said.

In confirming that he'd return for a fourth season, Strong spoke highly of Louisville athletics director Tom Jurich -- noting that Jurich gave him his first head coaching position after 27 years as an assistant. 

"I was always on the short list, but Tom let me know that I was the only one on his list," he said, adding later: "Louisville has a special place in my heart."

Strong did not discuss in the news conference a possible contract extension for himself. WDRB's Rick Bozich reported on Twitter that Jurich would later hold a news conference.

"It's about being loyal and making a statement about who you really are," he said.