National media outlet looks foolish for their take on Vols HC Josh Heupel
Pro Football Focus recently ranked the top 25 head coaches in college football. And while they didn't necessarily disrespect Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel, they look extremely foolish after looking at their rankings. PFF ranked Heupel as the No. 11 best head coach in college football. Here's the full top 10 from Pro Football […]
Pro Football Focus recently ranked the top 25 head coaches in college football.
And while they didn't necessarily disrespect Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel, they look extremely foolish after looking at their rankings.
PFF ranked Heupel as the No. 11 best head coach in college football.
Here's the full top 10 from Pro Football Focus:
From PFF: Heupel is one of the top offensive minds in the sport right now. The Volunteers posted the second-most efficient offense in the country in expected points added per play. With that explosive attack, Tennessee went 11-2 and finished sixth in the AP poll, its first top-10 finish since 2001. It was only his second year as head coach. Before he took over, the Volunteers were sub .500 in three of the previous four seasons.
At first glance, No. 11 seems like a fair ranking for Heupel, who is 18-8 through his first two seasons at Tennessee.
But when you look at the rest of the top 10, something immediately stands out.
Heupel beat three of the coaches in the top 10 this past season (Alabama's Nick Saban, Clemson's Dabo Swinney, and LSU's Brian Kelly). And he did it despite those programs having more talent (and those head coaches also have significantly more head coaching experience than Heupel).
I know Heupel doesn't have the full body of work that Saban, Swinney, and Kelly have, but those head-to-head wins should count a little more.
Now, I'm not suggesting that Heupel should be ahead of Saban or Swinney — both of those guys have multiple national championships on their resumé. They're simply on a different level career-wise.
But I could see Heupel being above Kelly — especially after the way Tennessee dominated LSU in Baton Rouge last season. Kelly doesn't have the championships on his resumé that Saban and Swinney have. The former Notre Dame head coach hasn't proven that he can get over the hump and he's way more chances than Heupel's had.
I could also see Heupel being above James Franklin and Kyle Whittingham. And Luke Fickell has a lot to prove now that he's finally joining a Power-5 conference.
It seems like the national media is still a bit skeptical when it comes to Heupel. But if he can lead the Vols to a second straight season with 10 or more wins, it'll be much harder for those national media outlets to remain skeptical.
