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Tennessee football: Josh Heupel outlines expectations for 2021

By Bre'ana Singleton

Jan 30, 2021; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head football coach Josh Heupel speaks during the game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Kansas Jayhawks at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 30, 2021; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head football coach Josh Heupel speaks during the game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Kansas Jayhawks at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports /
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Josh Heupel is ushering in a new era of Tennessee football and outlining his expectations for the 2021 season.

Former Tennessee Volunteer head coach Jeremy Pruitt left behind a toxic culture in Knoxville, one that new coach Josh Heupel will have to actively combat in his first few months with the team.

NCAA violations and a coaching change reasonably have some Vols players uneasy about going into the season. Some players, on the other hand, are fans of Heupel and the staff that he’s put together so far.

Heupel was brought in by new Tennessee athletic director Danny White, who also hired Heupel on at UCF. The new head coach replaced Scott Frost in Orlando after he moved on to Nebraska. The highlight of his tenure with UCF was an undefeated season in his first year with the team before an eventual Fiesta Bowl loss to LSU.

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Heupel is coming off of his first head coaching experience at UCF where he went 28-8 in three seasons with the Knights. Now, he takes the helm at Tennessee hoping to get them moving back in the right direction. He took some time after National Signing Day to address his expectations for the upcoming season.

Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel’s expectations

There was a lot of commotion surrounding Heupel’s hiring and there will certainly be more as he rounds out his coaching staff.

“I think by the time we hit the ground next Monday, we’ll be close to having our full-time positions filled up and most of our sub-cabinet coaches filled up as well,” said the coach. “I’m going to let Danny (White) and our administration handle the announcements next week.”

In regards to the 2021 season, the former UCF head coach said that he feels like the Vols have everything they need to win in Knoxville.

“As far as game to game, we have a ton of talent in our locker room…it’s our job to go through the process of building the football team the right way, being accountable of one another, love one another, and put ourselves in position to win a football game every Saturday afternoon. We have all the tools and resources and players here to do that this Fall.”

Tennessee will be looking to recover from its awful 3-7 record posted last season. Heupel definitely has his work cut out for him this year, but fans have to be excited about the approach he’s bringing to the table.

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