There’s one thing that could potentially delay the Tennessee Vols’ defensive coordinator hire
The Tennessee Vols are looking for a new defensive coordinator after moving on from Tim Banks on Monday.
The Tennessee Vols are in the market for a new defensive coordinator after parting ways with Tim Banks on Monday.
On3’s Chris Low tweeted on Monday that he believes Tennessee will make a hire “pretty quickly”.
So far, the most popular name that’s emerged in this search is Washington Huskies defensive coordinator Ryan Walters, who has worked alongside Heupel in the past (two seasons at Missouri and one season at Oklahoma).
“You can consider [Walters] the name that makes the most sense,” said VolQuest’s Austin Price Tuesday on 104.5 The Zone’s Ramon and Will. “Knowing Josh Heupel and his tendency to care about his culture, and what he’s going to look for in a defensive coordinator, his history with a coach, all of that, that one makes the most sense. Now, can they get to the point where they cross all the T’s and dot all the I’s and get across the finish line, if that’s the route [Heupel] is going? We’ll see.
“There’s been plenty of times that a coach has basically [had a deal] with a school and things change, and one little hiccup causes the whole thing to fall apart. We’ll see if Tennessee can get to that point if that’s where [Heupel] is going. But that’s the one that makes the most sense, as far as connecting the dots.”
One thing that could delay Tennessee’s defensive coordinator hire
If Walters ends up being the top target for Tennessee — and to be clear, we don’t know at this time if that’s the case — then the timing of the hire could be tricky.
That’s because Washington is set to play Boise State on Saturday (December 13) in the LA Bowl.
Considering game prep has already started for the Huskies for that matchup, it’s hard to see Walters leaving Washington to take another job before the game is played. Now, he could accept the job at Tennessee and still coach Washington on Saturday. That’s certainly a possibility.
But it’s also possible that Tennessee, out of respect to Washington, could wait until after the LA Bowl to make a move with Walters.
Of course, it’s also still possible that Tennessee hires someone other than Walters. But if Walters is the pick and it’s not announced before the weekend, the fact the Huskies have a bowl game on Saturday could be the reason why.
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