Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel addresses how involved he is in making NIL deals with players
The Tennessee Vols were very active in the NCAA transfer portal this offseason, which means there were plenty of NIL deals getting negotiated on Rocky Top over the winter months.
Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel doesn’t typically speak much about NIL deals with players.
Heupel tends to offer vague responses to questions about NIL, but he shared some insight into his involvement in those deals during an interview this week with Josh Pate, a college football talk show host.
Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel touches on his role in NIL deals
While speaking with Pate, Heupel explained that while he wants to know everything about the players the Vols are pursuing, he’s not in the “nuts and bolts” of contract negotiations.
“Ultimately, I want to know the players that we’re bringing in here in a very clear way,” said Heupel. “From what the tape looks like to who they are. What’s their makeup as a competitor and as a person? I think it’s important that you continue to recruit to the culture of your program and who you want to be. And I think we’ve done a really good job of that in the portal — which is hard to do because it happens extremely quickly.
“But our staff has tied everything together in a really good way. The details of the contracts and that type of thing, I have a general understanding (of the contracts). But I’m not in the nuts and bolts of every contract.”
I’m guessing Heupel’s involvement varies depending on the situation and player. But for the most part, it seems he wants to keep the contract stuff separate (as much as possible) from his coach-athlete relationship with players.
This is still a relatively new world that everyone is learning to navigate. And every player has a unique situation. Heupel, though, seems to be doing his best to make sure NIL doesn’t become a big distraction on Rocky Top.