Tennessee Vols: Why Josh Heupel needs to take a page from Tony Vitello's playbook
Tennessee Vols head football coach Josh Heupel should take a page from UT baseball coach Tony Vitello's playbook. Vitello and his team have embraced being hated in the SEC. Tennessee baseball is playing with a level of swagger we haven't seen on Rocky Top in a long time. And other fan bases and teams can't […]
Tennessee Vols head football coach Josh Heupel should take a page from UT baseball coach Tony Vitello's playbook.
Vitello and his team have embraced being hated in the SEC. Tennessee baseball is playing with a level of swagger we haven't seen on Rocky Top in a long time. And other fan bases and teams can't stand it.
Tennessee baseball's team is the most talked-about college baseball team in the nation right now thanks to their high level of play and the incredible culture they've created where they have embraced the hate directed toward them.
Heupel needs to lead Tennessee's football team down the same path.
If Tennessee baseball is being talked about this much nationally, just imagine the reaction to Vols football in similar situations.
Tennessee's football team, which improved dramatically last year in Heupel's first season leading the program, needs to play with the same level of swagger as the baseball team.
Opposing fan bases will hate it. The national media probably will hate it, too.
Recruits and potential transfers, however, will love it.
And that's what really matters.
Heupel should let the team have a little more fun than usual during games. Stay focused, obviously. But bring some flair to the sidelines. Borrow the Vols' homerun coat and use it as a turnover coat. Have fun with it.
Tennessee baseball has become must-see television for folks outside of the UT fan base because of the excitement level of the team.
The Vols' football team needs to become must-see television for non-Tennessee fans.
Now, Heupel and UT are on the way to becoming must-see television thanks to their exciting up-tempo offense. But if the football team starts playing with the same swagger as the baseball team, it'll get to that point a little quicker.
Heupel has his own culture he's building. And he's done an incredible job so far. I don't think he needs to change who he is as a coach in any way. I just think he should take a page from Vitello's playbook, embrace the hate and let the football show its personality in a way that will enrage opponents and opposing fan bases.
If fans are having this much fun with the baseball team, the football team might as well travel down the same path.
Featured image via USA TODAY Sports
