Josh Heupel has reached a point in his tenure as the head coach of the Tennessee Vols where it’s time to make a few changes.

And that’s not throwing shade at Heupel — changes are necessary to survive more than five years as the head coach at any college football program.

One area where Heupel may want to consider some changes is his coaching staff. Heupel, for the most part, has hired coaches at Tennessee that he has a personal relationship with (several of Heupel’s hires have been promotions from within). Former Vols defensive lineman Marlon Walls, however, believes it’s time for Heupel to stop promoting from within so much.

Former Tennessee defensive lineman Marlon Walls has some advice for Josh Heupel

Walls, who played at Tennessee under Lane Kiffin, Derek Dooley, and Butch Jones, said on The Sports Source this week that Heupel needs to hire “some guys that are going to push and elevate this program”.

“Heupel is a great coach,” said Walls. “He did an awesome job of taking this program from where it was to creating some stability. The job he did with guys leaving for the portal with the whole (Jeremy) Pruitt deal, I don’t think we even understand how much he had to do — as far as mentality wise and changing people in the building.

“But here’s what you better do. You’ve got to stop promoting from within. Go find some guys that are going to push and elevate this program to where we’re not only just talking about, ‘Hey, you know what, they did alright, they made it to the playoff’….go get some guys that’s going to help elevate this program.”

A great coaching staff is a necessary ingredient to a championship team. I think the Vols have a pretty solid coaching staff in place. But there’s always room for improvement.

Nick Saban was never afraid to bring in elite coaches to help Alabama. And Ohio State got over the hump last season in large part because of Ryan Day’s decision to hire Chip Kelly as the Buckeyes’ play caller.

If Heupel is going to get Tennessee over the hump, he may need to make some bold moves with his coaching staff.

This article was originally published on A to Z Sports Tennessee Vols as ‘Here’s what you better do’ – Former Vols defender who played for 3 coaches at Tennessee has some advice for Josh Heupel.

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