Tennessee Head Football Coach Hot Board

(Photo via USA Today Sports)

Jeremy Pruitt

Quick Bio: Typically Nick Saban assistants haven’t gone on to have much success as head coaches. Just ask Vol fans about Derek Dooley. But Kirby Smart appears to have bucked that trend, and many wonder if Jeremy Pruitt could continue that.

Pros: Pruitt has continued the tradition at Alabama of making the Tide’s defense one of the most formidable defenses in the nation. He took over for Smart after he left for Georgia, and Alabama’s defense hasn’t missed a step. He’s also been a defensive coordinator at Florida State and Georgia. He also played football for both MTSU and Alabama back in the mid-1990s.

Cons/Questions: Smart has thus far been essentially the only Saban assistant who’s moved on to have success as a head coach aside from Jimbo Fisher. Pruitt has no experience as a head coach in his coaching career, and Vol fans would be very wary of hiring a Saban assistant after Dooley turned out to be an unquestioned failure.

Jedd Fisch

Quick Bio: Tennessee needs to make finding a quarterback coach a high priority for the next coaching staff that comes in. Whether it’s their head coach, offensive coordinator, or the actual QB coach position itself, the Vols would do well to have a QB guru on staff if possible. And Jedd Fisch has plenty of experience with quarterbacks.

Pros: Fisch has been an assistant or full-time QB coach for the Baltimore Ravens and Seattle Seahawks in the NFL and for Minnesota, Miami, Michigan, and UCLA in college. He’s currently the offensive coordinator and QB coach for UCLA, and he’s also been the offensive coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars in the NFL.

Cons/Questions: Fisch has bounced around every place he’s been in, never staying longer than four years at one spot. Not only that, but he’s never once been promoted or hired on as a head coach. Something smells Fisch-y about that.

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Comments

2 Responses

  1. The fans have to be there for the team and show them that we are still Vols. We cannot forget how hard this has been on them. We need to show up and make them proud that they came to UT and give the future Vols a reason to hope. GBO

  2. Jimbo was a Nick Saban assistant. So Kirby wasn’t the first successful Saban assistant

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