Tennessee baseball has quickly made a move to find its new head coach. The Vols are hiring Josh Elander as their newest head coach, the university announced Saturday. Danny White said Wednesday that Elander would be a candidate in a national search. That search lasted less than 72 hours with White deciding the in-house move was the right move.
“From the outset of this national search, Josh emerged as the undeniable top choice,” Tennessee Director of Athletics Danny White. “His relentless commitment has helped transform Tennessee baseball into a powerhouse, and we are proud to have him as our next head coach on Rocky Top. His influence inspires excellence in every aspect of our program and we look forward to continuing our quest for championships on the diamond under Josh’s guidance!”
Elander has spent the last eight years as an assistant coach at Tennessee under Vitello including the last three as associate head coach. Effectively Tennessee’s offensive coordinator, Elander has helped build some of the best offenses in the nation year-in, year-out.
In past years, the Vols have obliterated program offensive records including home run and total runs records. They have also contended for a number of SEC and college baseball offensive records too. Elander has been a major part of that success.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity here on Rocky Top,” Elander said. “I’m really happy for our players to continue building on what we’ve already built here. The hunt continues, and we’re still excited. Love this place and these people. So thankful for the best that’s yet to come.”
Tennessee has been stout at player development with both Elander and strength and conditioning coach Quentin Eberhardt playing a major part in that. The Vols have had a number of bench players become All-SEC contributors the following years including Trey Lipscomb, Jorel Ortega, Liam Spence, Kavares Tears and Dylan Dreiling.
More From RTI: Tennessee Football Remains in Position to Land the No. 1 WR in Back-to-Back Classes
Player development has just been a part of what’s made Tennessee’s offense consistently one of the nation’s best. Tennessee has recruited as well as any other program in the nation in the last half decade and Elander is a major part of that.
Elander is one of the best recruiters on Tennessee’s entire campus, not just within the baseball program. The Vols have stacked top five classes and have signed the nation’s No. 1 class each of the last two years. They’re poised to sign top recruiting classes in the 2026 and 2027 cycles too.
The most pressing question for Elander and Tennessee is about which assistant coaches will stay in Knoxville with the Vols’ new head coach. Veteran pitching coach Frank Anderson is one of the very best pitching coaches in the entire country and has been with Vitello and Elander at Tennessee since 2018.
Keeping Anderson on staff would give Elander and Tennessee a strong chance to hit the ground running and contend in the SEC starting this season. But there are a number of important coaches and support staff members who could leave. Eberhardt is extremely close with Vitello and seems like an obvious candidate to join him in San Fransisco.
Retaining Tennessee’s current roster is also supremely important for Tennessee. The transfer portal is now open for 30 days for Tennessee’s players. However, only graduate transfers would be able to transfer and retain eligibility. Elander’s promotion means Tennessee will almost certainly keep its roster together.
No one can be Tony Vitello at Tennessee. But Josh Elander has been with Vitello helping build Tennessee’s program into one of the sport’s best. Elander is getting an opportunity that he fully deserves.
