When Josh Heupel took over the Tennessee football program, the Vols were at one of their worst points in program history.
The Vols finished with sub-.500 records in three of the previous four seasons, including one season with four wins and the 2020 season with three wins.
At no point did anyone think Heupel would turn around the Vols program as quickly as he did. Heupel nearly doubled the number of wins of his predecessors over four years and completely turned around the football program.
Tennessee was 20-27 in the four years before Heupel took over, and in Heupel’s first four years, the Vols are 37-15. After the Vols’ win over UAB, Heupel secured his 40th win at Tennessee with a 3-1 start to the season.
That is an amazing accomplishment over the span of just a little more than four seasons on Rocky Top. Heupel has won 40 games in a 56-game period, dominating many of the Vols’ opponents along the way.
Not only has he completely flipped the program, but Tennessee is consistently dominating its non-conference games for the first time in a long time.
Since 2010, Tennessee has been lucky to win a non-conference game by a few touchdowns. During that same period, Tennessee only won two non-conference games by 30 points or more against FBS opponents.
Heupel won two non-conference FBS games by 30 points or more in his first season and has now won 11 total by 30 points or more. He has also been a covering machine for sports bettors, which is something Tennessee seldom achieved before Heupel.
While Heupel just missed on covering the 38.5-point spread in the 56-24 win over UAB, he continues to dominate the smaller schools throughout his tenure at Tennessee, which is something Tennessee fans did not expect to happen so quickly over Heupel’s four-year period at Tennessee, coming off some of the worst football in program history.
Tennessee now jumps into its SEC schedule with a date against 4-0 Mississippi State on Saturday. The undefeated Bulldogs will look for their SEC opener, while the Vols are looking for their first SEC win after falling to Georgia two weeks ago.
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Tennessee football remains at No. 15 after big win in updated AP Poll
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Tennessee football opens as two score favorites against Mississippi State
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Tennessee football’s electric offense shows out again throughout win over UAB
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Trent Dilfer going viral for absurd reason during Tennessee vs. UAB at Neyland
Tennessee football suffered a disappointing loss last week, but there is still a lot the Vols will have to say this season with nine games remaining this season.
Knowing that, Josh Heupel has spent the UAB week focusing on competition and growth for the Vols coming off their first loss of the season.
“Competitive makeup, competitive composure, the ability to go play the next play,” Heupel said to begin the video. “I thought they handled themselves well. It’s always about progress, moving forward, and what’s coming. Ultimately, last Saturday defined that week. We have another one this Saturday that will define this week, and we have to find a way to continue to grow.”
It sounds like Heupel and the Vols are focusing on playing the season one week at a time, which is a common theme throughout the sport.
Heupel is also playing into the competitive nature of his leaders. Between Joey Aguilar, Chris Brazzell II, and Star Thomas on the offensive side of the ball, they thrive off competition, and it showed last week against Georgia.
With those themes headlining the UAB game, expect the Vols to come out with a lot of energy and focus on taking it to UAB this Saturday in their final tune-up game before they jump into the long SEC schedule, which starts with a trip to Starkville, Mississippi. Before that happens, though, the Vols have to handle business against the Blazers.
Tennessee and UAB is set to kick off their Week 4 matchup at 12:45 PM ET on SEC Network. Tennessee is a big favorite, and it looks like the Vols could easily cover the 38-point spread based on recent history.
According to Brandon Zimmerman, Heupel’s Vols average 57.5 points in every game after the Georgia week, dating back to 2021, which might not be good news for the Blazers.
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Tennessee football remains at No. 15 after big win in updated AP Poll
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Tennessee football opens as two score favorites against Mississippi State
•
Tennessee football’s electric offense shows out again throughout win over UAB
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Trent Dilfer going viral for absurd reason during Tennessee vs. UAB at Neyland
First, Urban Meyer woke up and realized he was way off with his thoughts on Joey Aguilar and Tennessee football. Now, UAB head coach Trent Dilfer, making his way to Knoxville for a Week 4 clash, is singing the praises of Aguilar for what he’s getting done this season.
Leading up to kickoff on Saturday, Dilfer spoke with reporters about what he’s seeing out of the Vols and their new starting quarterback. To say the former NFL signal-caller has been impressed with Aguilar would be a massive understatement, as he believes Tennessee’s new QB1 is looking better than Iamaleava did in 2024.
Trent Dilfer knows that Joey Aguilar has been an upgrade for Tennessee football
“The quarterback is playing, I think, better than the quarterback last year − significantly better,” Dilfer said via Mike Wilson of the Knoxville News Sentinel. “He makes quicker decisions. Sees the field a lot better. Has played a lot better football. Is tremendously accurate when he’s comfortable.”
Hey, we’re not going to disagree with Dilfer and he’s got on his mind what a lot of people have been saying about Aguilar and Iamaleava. Meyer and others thought the 2025 season was going to be over for the Vols when Iamaleava left town for UCLA.
Iamaleava has learned that the grass isn’t always greener, as UCLA is yet to post a win and the brutal start led to Deshaun Foster getting fired. Meanwhile for Tennessee, the Vols are ranked No. 15 in the country and Aguilar has seen his Heisman odds skyrocket after his 5 TD showing vs. Georgia.
The Vols lost to Georgia in a heartbreaker, but it was made clear to everyone that Aguilar is a stud and that Tennessee will continue to prove people wrong this season. Unfortunately for Dilfer and the Blazers, they’re going to get a close-up look at how great Aguilar can be with the ball in his hands on Saturday. Tennessee should cruise to a lopsided win in this one.
•
Tennessee football remains at No. 15 after big win in updated AP Poll
•
Tennessee football opens as two score favorites against Mississippi State
•
Tennessee football’s electric offense shows out again throughout win over UAB
•
Trent Dilfer going viral for absurd reason during Tennessee vs. UAB at Neyland
