Tennessee linebacker coach William Inge is entering just his second season in Knoxville. Still, the veteran coach hasn’t wasted any time making a huge impact on the Vols’ current and future rosters.
Since joining the Big Orange, Inge has played a key role in signing four-star LB Christian Gass, four-star LB Jadon Perlotte, and four-star LB Jaedon Harmon, while also getting commitments from four-star LB Brayden Rouse and four-star LB TJ White, among others.
Tennessee junior linebacker Arion Carter detailed what makes Inge a relatable coach and someone that people want to play for during his appearance at SEC Media Days on Tuesday in Atlanta.
“He’s a selfless coach,” Carter said of Inge. “Just a guy who wants to see you win more than he has ever had or a better career than he’s ever dreamt of. It’s great having a guy like that, a man like that, who is just a leader. A selfless guy, like I said before, who puts his players first and that wants to be able to see and put his guys in the right position to go win. Be able to teach guys to where they can master it, learn it, and reteach it to their peers.”
While Inge brings a wealth of knowledge from his long career as an assistant in both college football and the NFL, the rising second-year Tennessee coach also understands the value of giving players a voice in the room – something that Carter, along with his teammates in the past, has found appreciation for.
“I feel like we do that often,” Carter said about Inge’s player-led position meetings. “I feel like we do that more often times than not. It’s better, I feel like from a learning perspective, that you hear from your peers sometimes. Something can resonate with a (player) more, whereas getting it from a coach. That’s just something that we’ve evolved over time in doing, and I feel like we’ve gotten really, really great at it. It’s just something that we’re going to continue to build upon.”
Inge’s linebacker room helped Tennessee earn the sixth-rated defense in all of college football last year. His recruiting prowess has also helped capture five four-star commitments in the last two recruiting cycles.
William Inge is the best Tennessee recruiter in a good while.
He’s been on the job for 17 months and has landed four-stars Christian Gass, Jaedon Harmon, Jadon Perlotte, TJ White and now Brayden Rouse.
— Ryan Schumpert (@rschump00) July 8, 2025
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There’s no question that Inge’s tools are helping Tennessee build the defense that Josh Heupel is looking for, both for now and in the future.
“I know that because of what we’ve done through a lot of adversity and the guys that we have inside of that defensive unit room, talking about the players, are highly competitive,” Heupel said about the UT defense on Tuesday. “They have great physical traits. There’s an accountability factor to doing your job that’s at a really high level. We got great leadership, Tim Banks and our defensive staff have done a phenomenal job since we’ve arrived and I’m excited to go play with these guys on the defensive side of the ball.”
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more Tennessee football coverage from SEC Media Days on Tuesday in Atlanta.
