An offensive coordinator with a strong tie to Josh Heupel just got fired, and it won’t be surprising if he lands in a role at Tennessee

The Tennessee Vols are making some big moves so far this offseason. Could more be on the way?

Zach Ragan — Tennessee Volunteers News Writer
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An offensive coordinator with a strong tie to Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel got fired on Thursday.

And it wouldn’t be a surprise if he lands at Tennessee in the not-too-distant future.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported on Thursday morning that Kansas State is parting ways with offensive coordinator Matt Wells.

Josh Heupel worked for Matt Wells at Utah State in 2015

Heupel knows the Wells’ family well.

In 2015, after Heupel was fired by Oklahoma, he landed on Wells’ staff at Utah State as the offensive coordinator.

Additionally, Heupel played for the Sooners when Wells’ brother, Luke, was a student assistant at Oklahoma (it was during that time that Heupel first met Matt Wells).

Why it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Matt Wells join Josh Heupel’s staff at Tennessee

Tennessee doesn’t have any on-field offensive coaching staff openings, but I still think Wells ends up on Rocky Top in some role.

One of the lowest moments in Heupel’s career was when he was fired by his alma mater after the 2014 season. With his career essentially at a crossroads, Wells gave Heupel a job.

The year at Utah State was an important season for Heupel, allowing him to recalibrate his career.

“He got out of the pressure cooker (at Oklahoma),” said former Utah State offensive line coach Mark Weber of Heupel to The Athletic in 2021. “He got out of a tough situation. He was just one of the guys. He wasn’t Josh Heupel. He was just one of the coaches. I loved my time at Utah State, and it’s a great place, and I don’t know what his salary was at Oklahoma, but I’m sure it was more than it was at Utah State. It was probably half, at least. I mean, that’s a tough pill to swallow. He never talked about that stuff. He was just coaching ball.”

Maybe Wells has other plans for his post-Kansas State career. It’s hard to know what he’ll choose to do. But I don’t think Heupel will hesitate to pick up the phone and offer him a position at Tennessee, even if it’s just an analyst role.

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