It's a homecoming for Tennessee Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel. The 2000 AP College Football Player of the Year won a national title with the Oklahoma Sooners back in 2000 and spent many years working up the coaching ranks from graduate assistant up to co-offensive coordinator. When speaking about his expectations on returning to Norman, Oklahoma to play in the Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, Heupel had a tongue-in-cheek response about the atmosphere, per Tennessee beat writer Zach Ragan.
“It should be a great crowd. It's a passionate fan base. I'm expecting them to be extremely quiet for us out of respect for me and our program too.”
Emerging star quarterback Nico Iamaleava will lead the No. 6 ranked Tennessee football against the No. 15 Oklahoma Sooners.
The rise of Tennessee football with Josh Heupel as its leader
The 46-year-old head coach transferred to Oklahoma in 1999 and played two years there. After being a sixth-round choice in the 2001 NFL Draft, Heupel was out of the league by 2002 and returned to the Sooners as a GA. From 2006 to 2010, Heupel served as quarterbacks coach and his duties expanded to include co-OC in 2011 to 2014.
After three years of revitalizing UCF from 2018 to 2020, Heupel landed with Tennessee football and has been their head coach for the last four seasons.
What's most impressive about this Volunteers team is Iamaleava. He's already flown up the betting odds table as a strong contender to win the Heisman.
He's also not afraid of a big soundbite to the media. After taking down Chattanooga in Week 1, Iamaleava didn't shy away from painting a colorful picture via the Volunteers' post-game press conference.
“Shoot, to keep our foot on their throat. When we go up big, I think still coming to the sideline with the same mindset that it’s 0-0 and just carrying that out the full game.”
Found at No. 6 in our ClutchPoints' college football power rankings, Shane Shoemaker summarized what makes the Tennessee football special.
“Tennessee football scored 50-plus points for their third consecutive game, while also allowing none to Kent State. The Vols put up 65 points in the first half alone, the most by an FBS team in over two decades. Now, can Tennessee head into Oklahoma, their new SEC foes, and continue their dominance?”
The Volunteers will certainly be put to the test against Oklahoma, No. 4 Alabama and No. 2 Georgia, who are coming up on their schedule. Conference play will quickly clarify the SEC's haves and have-nots.
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