Anonymous coach gives his take on Tennessee Vols football

The Tennessee Vols appear to be on the right track under Josh Heupel, the head coach who was hired by UT after the disastrous Jeremy Pruitt era. Tennessee finished last season with a 7-6 record, due in large part to having the No. 7 ranked scoring offense in the nation. Heupel's up-tempo offense caused plenty […]

Zach Ragan — Tennessee Volunteers News Writer

Jun 17, 2022 7:16 AM EDT

The Tennessee Vols appear to be on the right track under Josh Heupel, the head coach who was hired by UT after the disastrous Jeremy Pruitt era.

Tennessee finished last season with a 7-6 record, due in large part to having the No. 7 ranked scoring offense in the nation.

Heupel's up-tempo offense caused plenty of issues for SEC opponents last season — even Alabama, who struggled at times to handle the Vols' hurry-up offense.

Tennessee ultimately lost this game, but this might have been one of the most hype sequences of the year. The Vols were very much in this against Alabama until the fourth quarter when a lack of depth did Tennessee in. pic.twitter.com/BT6e0Hip1K
— zach ragan (@zachTNT) February 14, 2022

The Vols simply didn't have enough depth last season to compete with teams like Alabama and Georgia.

What Tennessee accomplished in Heupel's first season at the helm wasn't a fluke. His offensive scheme works. And Heupel and his staff are constantly tweaking the offense to keep opponents on their toes.

I know there are plenty of opposing fans out there who don't believe in Heupel's offense. They seem to think it's gimmicky and that it won't hold up in the SEC.

Opposing coaches, however, don't see it the same way. They've been impressed with what Heupel's doing on Rocky Top.

Here's what an anonymous coach had to say about Heupel and the Vols in Lindy's Sports preseason college football preview magazine:

"I've been really impressed with Josh Heupel. He did a great job with (QB) Hendon Hooker. Obviously, they had some talent there. He's doing a good job in the portal. The portal gets Tennessee back in the recruiting game. You can go out and buy these guys…."

If Tennessee has another solid season, rival fan bases won't have any choice but to accept that Heupel is the real deal.

We've seen the Vols on "the right track" plenty of times over the last 15 years, but this time just feels different. Tennessee might truly be on the verge of something special with Heupel leading the charge.

Featured image via Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK