Tennessee Football added a new assistant coach to its staff on Monday with the hiring of Derek Jones as the Vols’ new cornerbacks coach. Jones previously spent the last four seasons as Virginia Tech’s cornerbacks coach and worked in a few different positions with Duke for 12 seasons from 2008-2019. While with the Blue Devils, Jones spent eight of those years working directly under now-Tennessee defensive coordinator Jim Knowles.
In addition to his roles in the secondary, Jones also served in an associate head coach role during the 2018 and 2019 seasons at Duke and during the 2020 and 2021 seasons with Texas Tech.
Returning to the Volunteer State is even a bit of a homecoming for Jones. He played one season of Arena Football with the Nashville Katz in 1997 before beginning his coaching career as a graduate assistant with Ole Miss in 1998.
“Derek understands what it takes to play cornerback at this level,” Josh Heupel said in a statement. “He’s coached and played SEC football and has a track record of developing cornerbacks for the NFL. He’s also shown great ability as a recruiter in over two decades of coaching. He has familiarity with Coach Knowles and will make a seamless transition to our staff. We are excited to welcome Derek to Rocky Top!”
On Tuesday morning, Jones posted pictures and videos of his first impressions of the Vols’ facility. Check them out below:
“Always Be Grateful, Stay Humble and Remain Hungry.
It’s a great time to be a Tennessee Volunteer!” #Ap2w pic.twitter.com/2wk5myQHaNAdvertisement— Derek Jones (@CoachdjCheetah) February 17, 2026
“The true test of how hungry you are for something is what you do when no one is watching to obtain it.” #Ap2w pic.twitter.com/iFNU0pExU8
— Derek Jones (@CoachdjCheetah) February 17, 2026
“Discipline and consistency alone will distance or separate you from the majority of your competitors.” #Ap2w pic.twitter.com/vzjYE6wE4f
— Derek Jones (@CoachdjCheetah) February 17, 2026
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Tennessee Football’s defensive staff is now complete after the cornerbacks position was quickly filled by Jones. Originally, Tennessee had hired Ohio State’s Michael Hunter Jr. for the position, but he departed the program last week for a job with the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams.
New defensive coordinator Jim Knowles is joined by co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach Anthony Poindexter, cornerbacks coach Derek Jones, and LEOs coach Andrew “AJ” Jackson. The Vols also retained linebackers coach William Inge and defensive line coach Rodney Garner from Tim Banks’ previous defensive staff.
Jones will have plenty of pieces to work with when the Vols hit the field for training camp this spring. While some players are designated safeties, Tennessee signed eight defensive backs through the transfer portal this winter: Qua Moss, Kayin Lee, Dejaun Lane, TJ Metcalf, Tevis Metcalf, DJ Burks, Isaiah Hardge, and Jadais Richard.
