When the Tennessee Vols hired Josh Heupel in January to replace the much-maligned Jeremy Pruitt as the program's head coach, it was viewed by some fans as a bit of a letdown.

A large number of fans wanted a big-name hire. Names like James Franklin, Matt Campbell, Mario Cristobal, and even Lane Kiffin were bandied about on social media.

Heupel, however, was a name that didn't get talked about much in the rumor mill.

And there's a reason for that.

Heupel's first year at UCF was tremendous. He led the Knights to a 12-1 record — the only loss was to LSU in the Peach Bowl.

2019 didn't go quite as well, but it was still a successful season. UCF went 10-3 with wins against Stanford and Lane Kiffin's Florida Atlantic squad.

In 2020, UCF went 6-4. That's where the skepticism from fans comes into play. It appears that UCF regressed each season under Heupel.

I wonder if UCF's final record in 2020 was 8-3 how fans would've viewed the hire.

8-3 certainly looks a lot better than 6-4.

And UCF should've probably finished with an 8-3 record.

Here's why.

First off, UCF had their game on September 12 against FIU canceled due to COVID-19. That game was supposed to serve as UCF's season-opener for the revised COVID-19 schedule. I think it's safe to say that it would've been an automatic win for the Knights.

So that's seven wins. The other potential win would've been against Memphis.

UCF missed a 40-yard field goal with 19 seconds remaining in the game. If that kick is made the Knights probably win.

I can't help but think that Heupel would've been a much more popular hire coming off an 8-3 season instead of a 6-4 season.

The record doesn't always tell the whole story. And that could definitely be true when it comes to Josh Heupel.

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