How Alex Golesh’s decision on whether to stay at USF could have a major impact on the Tennessee Vols

Could Alex Golesh be on the move after the 2025 season? There are reports that Arkansas is closing in on hiring him away from USF.

Zach Ragan — Tennessee Volunteers News Writer
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While everyone is paying attention to Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin and his looming career decision (will he leave for LSU or Florida?), former Tennessee Vols offensive coordinator Alex Golesh is considering whether he’ll stay at USF or leave for another head coaching job.

The Arkansas Razorbacks have reportedly made Golesh, who is in his third season as the head coach at USF, their top target. And for a few hours on Wednesday, it looked like Arkansas had officially swiped Golesh from USF.

USF CEO of athletics Rob Higgins, however, released a statement on Wednesday afternoon noting that Golesh hasn’t made an official decision yet.

“Since Saturday’s game, Coach Golesh has been presented with outside opportunities that he has been transparent about with us,” tweeted Higgins. “We are respectful and supportive of Coach and his family in their decision making process.”

Alex Golesh’s decision on whether to stay at USF could have a major impact on the Tennessee Vols

I have no idea what Golesh is going to decide. I’m not sure he even knows right now (which probably applies to most coaches making decisions right now — it’s total chaos).

If Golesh decides to leave USF for a job in the SEC, it could trigger a domino effect that impacts Tennessee in a big way.

When a head coach leaves a Group of Five program for a Power-Four job, they usually don’t bring their entire staff with them. There’s almost always some shakeup. Guys take other jobs, upgrade hires are made, etc.

I think it’s reasonable to expect that if Golesh lands at Arkansas (or any other SEC/Power-Four job), that the fallout of his decision could affect Tennessee’s coaching staff.

For example, if Golesh leaves USF, who replaces him? Would USF try to hire someone from the Josh Heupel coaching tree to keep some continuity? Maybe they target Vols offensive coordinator Joey Halzle, which would obviously leave a huge void on Tennessee’s coaching staff. Or perhaps USF swipes head coach Jerry Mack from Kennesaw State. Mack, who served as Tennessee’s running backs coach for three seasons under Heupel, could then look to bring a current member of the Vols’ staff to USF (for example, it could make sense for Mack to bring Vols wide receivers coach Kelsey Pope along to serve as his offensive coordinator).

There’s also the chance that Golesh could hire someone away from Tennessee’s staff to serve in a more prominent role on his staff.

There are numerous scenarios (including with defensive coaches, too) that could play out. The point is that Golesh’s decision on whether to stay at USF is something Tennessee fans should pay attention to — because it could absolutely impact the way Heupel’s coaching staff looks in 2026.

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