Josh Heupel was introduced as Tennessee’s head coach Wednesday.
During Heupel’s introductory press conference, the new Tennessee head coach discussed his offensive philosophy and coaching background.
“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,” Heupel said. “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.
“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.”
Heupel comes to Tennessee after serving the last three seasons in the same capacity at UCF. He compiled a 28-8 record as the Knights’ head coach.
The new Tennessee head coach has Southeastern Conference coaching experience. He served as Missouri’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach from 2016-17.
During his college playing career, Heupel was Oklahoma’s starting quarterback during the Sooners’ BCS national championship season in 2000.
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