College football insider says Vols could look to Josh Heupel's past at offensive coordinator
It's been nearly two weeks since Alex Golesh stepped down as the Tennessee Vols' offensive coordinator to take the head coaching job at USF. And during those two weeks, there hasn't been much movement (at least publicly and via reports) on Josh Heupel's offensive coordinator search. That's mostly because Heupel is busy with recruiting, bowl […]
It's been nearly two weeks since Alex Golesh stepped down as the Tennessee Vols' offensive coordinator to take the head coaching job at USF.
And during those two weeks, there hasn't been much movement (at least publicly and via reports) on Josh Heupel's offensive coordinator search.
That's mostly because Heupel is busy with recruiting, bowl game prep, and NCAA transfer portal madness. Plus, Heupel already knows what the offense will look like next season, so it's not like he's concerned about that aspect of the search.
Still, the hire has to be made eventually.
College football insider John Brice, a former Tennessee beat writer who now reports for Football Scoop, joined 104.5 The Zone's Blaine and Mickey this week and he discussed the Vols' offensive coordinator search.
"I think (Vols quarterbacks coach) Joey Halzle is certainly the strongest in-house candidate and has a great shot to be Tennessee's next offensive coordinator," said Brice. "Another name that I've heard that I think has a lot of credence to it would be to watch Joe Jon Finley, the current associate head coach and tight ends coach at the University of Oklahoma. He and Heupel have a very strong history together. They coached together at Oklahoma, both obviously played at Oklahoma….and then, also, Heupel had him on his offensive staff part of the time he was at Missouri."
"I think the overall thing to note is that it's incredibly likely that Heupel will go back to calling the plays himself," added Brice.
Brice noted that Heupel would probably prefer to call plays. The fact that Golesh called plays in 2022 was a testament to the job Golesh did during his time under Heupel.
I could see a scenario where Finely, who served as the passing game coordinator at Ole Miss in 2020 under Lane Kiffin, is hired as Tennessee's tight ends coach and serves as co-offensive coordinator with Halzle. That might be the best scenario for the Vols in 2023.
Halzle and Finley were graduate assistants together at Oklahoma for two seasons. They were also together for one year at Missouri (after the 2016 season, Halzle stepped away from the coaching profession for two seasons).
Continuity is extremely important in Heupel's offense. This setup — Halzle and Finley working together — would certainly provide plenty of continuity.
Featured image via Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
