New Tennessee co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach Anthony Poindexter met with the media Thursday afternoon in his first press conference since arriving in Knoxville. Poindexter came to Tennessee with Jim Knowles after spending the last five years at Penn State.
Poindexter discussed his early impressions of the safety room, what he learned working with Jim Knowles in 2025 and much more. Here’s everything Tennessee’s new defensive assistant said.
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On how Michigan safety transfer TJ Metcalf can quickly impact the team
“Well, TJ, actually, I recruited him out of high school. Great kid, great family, but been to Arkansas, played in this league, been to Michigan, played in the Big Ten. And (to) be able to get a kid with that kind of experience to be on the defense, I think he can be an impact early.”
On what is softness and what is the opposite that he demands in players
“For me, just softness is like the non-willingness to put your body on the line for your team you’re playing for. I just believe that. That’s how I was raised. That’s how I played in the backyard. I mean, you just got to be willing to throw your body on the line for the team you’re playing for. So that showed up on tape. Not that you aint going to miss tackles and stuff like that. I get it. I’ve played before. But you got to have innate toughness and a mental toughness that when things ain’t going as well as that you want them to, be able to fight through it and continue to play.”
On why he followed Jim Knowles to Tennessee
“Well Coach Knowles, he is a brilliant mind when it comes down to defense. I was honored that he wanted me to come with him. I’ve been knowing him for a long time, but not knowing him like I knew him in 2025. So for him to ask me, it was an honor. To be able to come to Tennessee was an honor. And I just want to be around good people. I mean, the staff he put together is excellent, so I’m excited to be here.”
On what he’s learned about his room in the last six weeks
“Besides their names? *laughs*. No, these kids really love football. They’re really smart. They wanna be coached. They’re very attentive in meetings. They want to be here. So I think we have something to work with. Now, obviously, we don’t have the pads on, we’re just doing some off-season stuff right now. But the way they come to work each day and, and how excited they are for the work, I think we have a chance.”
On if there’s heightened focus for the returning players with the new staff
“Well, you want them all to be wanting to step on the gas, but like I told them all when I first met with all the group together, ‘look, you earn your playing time. Just because I know you or didn’t know you, that don’t affect playing time. This is all what you do on the field.’ I think they all believe that it’s going to be performance-based. I’s no favorites. Everybody got to learn, earn their job. So as long as you got that kind of culture and everybody’s feel like they got a chance to win the job, I think you’re gonna be okay.”
On his impressions of Edrees Farooq, what he could develop into
“Well, I recruited E out of high school as well. He up in that Baltimore area. Again, he is smart, catch on to things fast, moves well. The little bit of tape that I watched from him last year, it looked like he got a feel for the game, so I’m excited to coach him.”
On how he would describe the defensive coaching staff
“We old. Nah, nah. *laughs* We got a lot of experience. A lot of guys that have been in different conferences, been around different players, and we done meshed well together quickly. So I’m excited to be with this staff. There’s a lot of really good coaches in that room, and Knowles is a great leader of men and coaches, so I’m excited.”
On how much of a learning curve there was for him last year learning Jim Knowles defense
“Yeah, anytime you’re going into a new system, it’s going to be a learning curve. That was probably the third defensive system or fourth defensive system that I had been in since I’ve been at Penn State. But it’s just like anything. They start throwing up— it’s more the terminology than the system itself. There’s some different things that he do that the other systems I’ve been in, we hadn’t done, but it’s more just the terminology, especially on the back end. The back end, you’re gonna have cover two, you’re gonna have cover four, you’re gonna have cover three, you’re gonna have man coverage. It’s just the terminology of how you wanna play it.”
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