Tennessee took the first step toward the future of its football program on Wednesday with the hire of UCF's Josh Heupel as its new head football coach. The former Oklahoma quarterback, a former assistant with the Sooners, Utah State and Missouri who was 28-8 in three seasons with the Knights in Orlando, is the 27th football coach for the Vols in their history and the fifth different coach to come into the program since the end of the 2008 season. Heupel had his introduction at a press conference at Neyland Stadium shortly after officially taking the job.
Heupel during his opening statement expressed his vision for Tennessee's future before fielding questions from the media in person and via Zoom for nearly 20 minutes, during which he addressed questions about the coaching staff he'll put together for the Vols, his expectations for the team's short- and long-term future, revealed why his offenses were so explosive and productive at UCF, his recruiting plan starting inside the state of Tennessee and why he left an appealing Group of Five position for a job several other coaches didn't want.
Opening statement:
"What an awesome day for myself and my family. So appreciative of the warm welcome we've received. I'm just excited to be a part of the Vol nation and Vol family. I want to thank Chancellor (Donde) Plowman and President (Randy) Boyd for your vision of what you want and foresee in athletics, the importance that it has on a collegiate campus and entrusting me and our family and entrusting us to mentoring and teaching these young men the game of life, not just the game of football.
"To (new athletic director) Danny (White), obviously those same sentiments, but having been around each other for three years, believing in the process we take our kids through and understanding what we're trying to accomplish on the football field. We want to go chase championships. We want to be our absolute best. At the same time, we want to develop them in life, too. Appreciate you guys entrusting us with the care of this program and these young men and individuals.
"When I was talking with Chancellor Plowman last night, one of the things that just registered with me and made this job opportunity so exciting is the aligned vision between leadership with everybody sitting here today. We talked about the importance of having a shared common vision, being able to work at our purpose to accomplish those things every single day and everybody pulling the rope in the same direction. When you have that in leadership, that's going to transcend through your entire campus and hopefully through our entire state here in Tennessee. When you do those things, great things are capable of happening, and obviously, I'm here because we have the opportunity to go chase championships on the football field.
"I also want to take this time to thank my wife Dawn, my copilot in life. She's probably piloting most of the time when I'm at the office. My beautiful daughter Hannah and my son Jace, they woke up to a changed world today. They were excited. There were a few tears maybe at the beginning of the day, but excited once they saw the orange T on the plane. They were ready to jump in and get here. Jace is excited. I was texting with Peyton Manning earlier and he’s counting down the days until he's able to catch a ball from him out on the game field. That was his first ask as we got on the plane.
"I also want to thank the players and the staff at UCF. The last three years have been a tremendous journey, tremendous ride. I appreciate them allowing me as their coach to be a part of their individual journey and accomplishing so many great things. I'm so proud of who and what we were as a program and so excited to see their success this year. There's great leadership inside the locker room and when you have great leadership from within, all things are possible, and I appreciate each and every one of them.
"One of the things that also registered with me, I was talking with the leadership here last night on a Zoom call, was Danny's conversation with the leadership council on the football team and the things that they are focused on accomplishing. That's why they came here to one of the biggest and best brands in college football. The things that they feel like they want, to make sure they have inside of the locker room, and at the end of the day it came down to connection. That's one of the things that's extremely important to me. It's been really hard this past year with COVID, but you play this game, it’s tough, physical, demanding game. You play it because of connection.
"There’s got to be a sense of belonging, a sense of brotherhood that has to reside in that locker room. To do that, you’ve got to spend time with each other and you have to do things outside of the game. That's one of the things that we try to pride ourselves on inside of our program here at Tennessee as we move forward, is that sense of connection, and that allows you to go chase greatness outside of the game. When you are connected you have a chance to love, when you have love you’re able to sacrifice for your teammates and this game is all about sacrifice. Accountability is something we talked about as well and making sure that we're being accountable to each other, the program, the process and the people that reside inside of it.
"On the offensive side of the football, Danny mentioned some of the successes that we have had as a program at UCF and throughout my tenure. We're going to play with tempo here. We're going to be the aggressor. We're going to play with our skill players out in space. We're going to give them an opportunity to push the football down the field. At the same time, if you really watch what we do, we're extremely balanced in our approach as far as run and pass. We want to be physical and we want to dominate the line of scrimmage. Those are all things that are going to translate to what we're doing here in Knoxville.
"At the same time, that aggressive mentality that we have on the offensive side of the football is going to carry over to what we’re doing on the defensive side of the football as well. We'll be multiple in our fronts, three-man and four-man fronts. We're going to bring pressure. We want to create negative plays. I think in the game of college football, offensively it's about creating big plays and defensively it’s about creating negative plays and getting people off schedule. If you put those two things together, you got a chance to have a really successful game plan and ultimately a season. I'm excited about embarking down that road as we get together as a football program here after this.
"I think one of the things that’s extremely important to the lifeblood of any program, but to the lifeblood here at Tennessee is recruiting. That's one of the great things here, is you have a national name, a national logo that allows you to go coast-to-coast and go attract the biggest, the best and the brightest. At the same time, the most important thing that we do is lock down our borders. We have to keep the kids inside of this state here, and that's for multiple reasons.
"They're going to play championship-caliber football, they're going to be developed, they're going to have an opportunity to move on to the NFL, they're going to get a great degree and they're going to be empowered to live inside this state once they are done with that degree. But we have to do that inside of our own borders, and that's going to come from me. A focus on recruiting in-state from me has got to transcend through our assistant coaching staff, but it’s also got to reside inside every Vol fan here inside the state of Tennessee. I say that meaning that everybody’s got to bring energy and passion, create and sustain a positive movement through everything that we're doing to create the sustainable change we need to lock down the borders here with our recruits.
"I'm excited about what we're embarking on. I'm excited to be a part of Vol Nation. I'm excited to do my very best for the state of Tennessee every single day. I promise you that our staff will do the exact same thing and I promise you that we’re going to embark on becoming what we're capable of becoming as a football program day-by-day and go chase championships and win those championships.”
How soon he’ll put together his coaching staff and if he’ll consider bringing coaches with him from UCF:
"We'll consider staff members from Central Florida. We'll do that. Also, current members on this staff, we'll have a conversation with them here, with the members here at Tennessee. It's important that we put together a staff at the right time, but that we get the right people, more than it is simply about the urgency of putting that staff together. But yes, we want to do it in a timely fashion."
His message to Tennessee players either considering entering the NCAA transfer portal or in there already and if he’ll recruit players from UCF to join him at Tennessee:
"I will not recruit players off of a roster that I was a part of. Don't believe that's the right thing to do. To the current members of this football program and this roster: We need to be a family. We need to act like a family. Everybody's got a different perspective, based on their background, of what a family is at times. When you sit in front of your team and there's 105 guys in front of you, everybody's got a little bit of a different perspective. But at the end of the day, a family to me is defined, when push comes to shove, that family stays together.
"Let's stay a family. Let's trust the people that are in place to help you become what you're capable of. You chose this university for the right reasons. I'm saying, you have the chance to be an elite football program. The tradition says that it should be. It's our job to get it back to that level. You're going to get an elite education and be in one of the best communities in college football.
"You walk outside to that stadium, I've coached here, and that's an electric stadium. There's not a better atmosphere in college football. I cannot wait to walk out to that, post-COVID next fall, and hear Rocky Top being played as we're running out. That, I just got goosebumps thinking about it. All of those things are still here. Trust me, our leadership, who I'm going to bring in, and give us a chance for our family to become connected. Let's go have fun together. Work hard, but let's have fun together and compete."
On the ongoing NCAA investigation and why the potential of penalties coming down not deter him from the job:
"I had very frank conversation with every person of leadership about what had transpired, what their knowledge is, what they believe is going to transpire as far as any penalty. The reason that I'm standing here today is because I believe in a very, very, very bright future for Tennessee football. I believe that there's a minor speed bump that we're going through, but the kids that are in our program right now and the kids that are being recruited are all going to have an opportunity to go play and chase championships."
On his offensive philosophy and background and how he's developed his system over his years as a coach:
"At the end of the day, you become a culmination of everything that you've done, but you really do change year-to-year, based on what your personnel is. That's who your quarterback is, what your skill set is there, who are the skill players around him. Whether you're going to play in three-wide receiver sets, four-wide receiver sets, or you're going to be in two-tight end sets. We've played in all of those things.
"It comes down to always looking at, and I think it's critical on the offensive side of the ball, but it's the same thing I'm going to talk to our defensive staff and our special teams staff about, is don't look at what kids can't do. Look at what they can do at a high level. Put them in a position of success. That is a coach's job. Understand who your players are and put them in a position of success. We'll base what we do offensively, as far as our personnel groupings and some of the subtle schemes, based on what our personnel is. It's grown and changed throughout the years, for sure."
How he’ll establish his new system on offense in his first offseason and if he’d like to keep Kevin Steele on his coaching staff:
"I'm going to have conversations with everybody that’s on staff. I'll touch on that question first. I think that's important. Your first question … we've done it successfully multiple times in different places that I’ve been. Your coaches have to get caught up to speed on what you're doing if they haven't been inside of the system. You got to coach your coaches, and then your coaches have got to put in time with your players. There's only one way to get to where you need to be, and that's time, effort, and energy. Our players have to be willing to go above and beyond to get to where we need to be. We will be able to get there, no question in my mind. As we get into spring ball, through summer workouts and by the time we get to the end of training camp, we'll be in good position by the time we hit the ground in the fall. "
What getting fired at Oklahoma at the end of the 2014 season mean to him and to his career:
"It gave me a chance, in some ways, just to kind of restart and re-look at what I wanted to do on the offensive side of the football. As a coordinator, you’re always going to try to carry out your head coach's vision. There were a lot of things we did successfully. I think we were top 10 in the country in offense that year and playing with a freshman quarterback that maybe started the last two-thirds of the season and ran into a buzzsaw in the bowl game against a really good Clemson football team. It gave me an opportunity to reshift my focus on what I wanted to be as far as an identity on the offensive side of the football."
On the challenges of being hired in late January as opposed to a more typical time of the offseason:
"The toughest part is getting a hold on what your roster actually is and what are the needs. With signing day being as close as it is, and all those vacancies that you want to fill, if you want to hold them, it's a different landscape now. too, because of the transfer portal. We talked about that as far as our own roster here, but junior college football is taking place this spring as well. As you get to spring ball, you potentially are going to need to fill some spots on your roster at that time as well. It’s a little bit different cycle, unique than what it has been in the past."
On how his UCF players handled his departure and if he spoke to them before taking the Tennessee job, and if the ability to compete for championships at the highest level was a factor in his decision to take the job:
"I got an opportunity to talk with our football team in Orlando this morning. It was important to me that we did that. At the same time, I created a video message for our new football team here in Knoxville. They were able to simultaneously, as I was having that conversation with them, receive a message from me, what I saw as the future of Tennessee football and things that are important inside of our culture. I love the players in Orlando. It was a hard morning.
"I said that about my kids when they found out that their home was going to change, but they are excited now, too. That was a tough conversation because you care deeply about the people that you’re pouring a lot of time and energy into as we did. I think for my family and I coming here, because we believe in this university, we believe in this football program, we believe in the leadership that we have here in place, and it's clearly aligned. There's a direct correlation to that alignment, and the ability for me to go do my job at the highest level."
How he feels he improved as a head coach over this three years at UCF in terms of being a leader and CEO of a program:
"I think your communication skills and how clear your communication has to be, not just with your football coaches, but with every support staff group that interacts with your players to give them the best opportunity to be successful. I think that's the No. 1 thing as I look back on the last three years. I'm in a better place today than I was before.”
What he learned about the SEC while coaching at Missouri in 2016 and 2017:
"The line of scrimmage in this league is different than it is in other leagues, so you’ve got to do a great job of recruiting and developing those guys. That size and strength matters up front, you have to do a great job. You're going to face elite pass rushers in this league, so you have to do a great job of protecting your quarterback as well, just from an offensive standpoint. But I think the line of scrimmage is the biggest difference."
On his relationship with athletic director Danny White and if he thought when White took the Tennessee job he would end up joining him in Knoxville:
"When Danny got the job here, I was disappointed that he wasn't going to be there (at UCF) any more. We had a conversation after it went public and wished him well and that was really the end of that conversation. I didn't think about this opportunity in that way. I think as a football coach, you're typically just living in the environment that you're in. You're so encapsulated in that and that's your sole focus that you don't think outside of those things.
"I think for Danny and I, for me, and I don't want to speak for him, there's great comfort in coming here and knowing exactly what you're getting out of the leader that you deal with the most. There's a clear vision of what he wants for the student-athlete experience, which is extremely important, and a clear vision of what he wants in an athletic department as a whole. There’s a lot of entities inside of our program here that are doing extremely well. You look at our basketball programs. It's my job to make sure that we're getting this built to the level where we can go chase championships every year, too."
On his vision for the successful future for Tennessee’s football program:
"We had a conversation, what are we looking for and how are we trying to build this? It's a long-term vision. I believe that we can have immediate success as well. We’ve got really good players inside of that locker room. I've watched a little bit of tape and have seen some of them in recruiting. There’s good players in there. It's our job as a coaching staff to get them ready to play their absolute best and go compete every Saturday. But at the same time, there's a long-term vision of what we're trying to build here for sustainable success and a clear vision of how we're trying to do that."
His history of developing of quarterbacks and what qualities quarterbacks need to have to be successful in his offense:
"We've had different guys play with a different skill set. Just going back through my tenure, we've had guys that were pure pocket guys to guys that have been able to use their feet in the run game, in designed runs or reading pressures off the edge, using their feet as a weapon in scrambles, we've had guys that fall somewhere in between. We've had 6-foot-3 guys and we’ve had 5-foot-10 in the last couple years at UCF. It's about the makeup and the guy inside as much as it is anything. How competitive are they? I think that's extremely important.
"What drives them every day? What is their ability to react and respond to adverse situations? Can they wipe the slate clean from the previous play? Can they handle all the noise and all the pressure that's going on around them, not just on game day, but in everyday life as they walk through campus? Can they meet the expectations and the work habits that you have to have? All of those little things add up to a guy playing at a championship level at that position. If you're going to chase championships, you better have a championship quarterback."
Why his 2020 UCF team that went 6-4 didn’t have the same success as his first two teams that went 22-4 in 2018 and 2019:
"All of our games, except for one loss, were one-possession games, really tight ball games. This past year, and everyone in America was dealing with it, COVID was a unique situation unto itself in how you brought your football team back. What were their workouts while they were away from you? When did you actually get your entire team back? What did your practice habits look like? For us, we didn't meet until the fourth game of the season, I think, as far as being in a full-team meeting that wasn't virtual. We lost some close ones.
"I think you look at the beginning of the season, I think we had close to 10 opt-outs, and all of those came because of different reasons and different challenges that they faced in their backgrounds. Some of them it might be a parent that was ill, some of them had young children, just different backgrounds. As the season wore on, I thought we got thinner as a football team and lost a couple of close ones to some good football teams."
How much he’ll reach out to and include Tennessee’s former players in the program and make them feel welcomed:
"If you played football here, you're welcome back here. I don't care if that's spring practice. I don't care if it’s observing a workout. I want them around our football program. That's important to me. I hope that when we get back to having spring games, I'm assuming there's an event that surrounds that weekend for former players (like) a golfing outing and coming to the game. I want guys here. Our guys that are currently playing (professionally), hopefully they come back and they're working out here during the offseason. Those are all things that I think are important. They give back to the players that are here. Hopefully, that does happen. Will I reach out to them? Absolutely."
On making in-state players the main focus of Tennessee’s recruiting plan:
"I didn’t know that (previous coaches) had sat up here and said, ‘Close the borders,’ but I do believe, I'd like to close the borders and not let any of them out. Is it going to be a focus? It absolutely will be a focus for us. That's the challenge for myself and for our coaching staff, to make contact with those guys and make sure they understand the importance they have inside of our program and the opportunity that they have inside of our program. Today being day one for me, giving them a clear vision of what we anticipate this looking like when they’re here."
If he got any advice or feedback from coaching colleagues on the Tennessee job and if you could still win big here:
"I think all the elements to win here are here. You are the biggest show, right? You walk out in that stadium and there’s 100,000-plus fans inside the stadium. Your facilities are as good as there are in the entire country. You're going to get a world-class education. A lot of the infrastructure that you need to be successful is absolutely here. Now it's about putting the right people in place to reach our young people so that we can have sustainable success here. We certainly believe that, having competed against them in the past, having watched them from afar, having talked to coaches that have been inside of this program in recent history."
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