Tennessee football is retaining inside linebackers coach WIlliam Inge, the program announced on Friday night.
Inge has been Tennessee’s inside linebackers coach the last two years and was the interim defensive coordinator in the Music City Bowl after Josh Heupel fired Tim Banks after his fifth season as the Vols’ defensive coordinator.
Heupel hired former Ohio State and Penn State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles to replace Banks. Knowles arrived in Knoxville back in December and his arrival made Inge’s future role uncertain.
Inge is one of just two defensive assistant coaches retained this offseason along with defensive line coach Rodney Garner. Co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach Anthony Pondexter, cornerbacks coach Michael Hunter and LEO coach Andrew Jackson are all new additions to Tennessee’s staff.
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The Iowa alum came to Tennessee after spending the previous two years as the co-defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach at Washington. Inge elected to come to Tennessee after originally agreeing to follow Kalen DeBoer from Washington to Alabama.
Inge excelled as a recruiter during his two years on Tennessee’s staff. The Vols signed a pair of blue-chip linebackers in the 2025 recruiting cycle— Jaedon Harmon and Jadon Perlotte— and followed it up by signing four-stars TJ White and Brayden Rouse in the 2026 cycle.
White ranks as the No. 4 inside linebacker while Rouse ranks as the No. 7 inside linebacker in the 2026 recruiting cycle according to the 247sports rankings.
Tennessee loses starting linebacker Arion Carter to the NFL Draft this offseason but returns most its other top backers including Edwin Spillman, Jeremiah Telander, Perlotte and Harmon.
