Josh Heupel avoids falling into a trap after Tennessee’s win over Syracuse that previous Vols coaches did not avoid
Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel avoided falling into a trap on Saturday after UT’s season-opening win against the Syracuse Orange that previous Volunteers coaches did not avoid. This is the third time since 2012 that Tennessee has played in (and won) the Aflac Kick Off Game (previously sponsored by Chick-fil-A). In 2012, Tennessee beat […]
Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel avoided falling into a trap on Saturday after UT’s season-opening win against the Syracuse Orange that previous Volunteers coaches did not avoid.
This is the third time since 2012 that Tennessee has played in (and won) the Aflac Kick Off Game (previously sponsored by Chick-fil-A).
In 2012, Tennessee beat NC State 35-21 to kick off the season. Five years later, the Vols knocked off Georgia Tech in double overtime to get off to a 1-0 start.
After the win in 2012, then-Vols head coach Derek Dooley donned the leather helmet (that’s given to the winner) for a photo op.
In 2017, then Tennessee head coach Butch Jones also put on the helmet.
Jones and Dooley were both fired by Tennessee a couple of months after putting on the leather helmet.
On Saturday, Heupel wisely avoided wearing the leather helmet (his son, Jace, had the honor).
Heupel obviously isn’t on the hot seat and isn’t in danger of getting fired. However, the leather helmet appears to be a source of bad luck for Vols coaches. Maybe avoiding that awkward photo op will provide Tennessee with some good luck this season.
Tennessee Volunteers News
‘I felt like I was misled or lied to’ – Former Tennessee QB gets real about one of his most infamous moments with the Vols
Former Tennessee Vols quarterback Jarrett Guarantano commented this week on one of his most infamous moments at UT. Guarantano, who played at Tennessee from 2016 to 2020 before finishing his career at Washington State in 2021, had been expecting to play in the Vols’ season opener against Georgia Tech in 2017. But that’s not what […]
