Comparing Josh Heupel To Other Tennessee Head Coaches

Tennessee Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel has quickly gotten the program back to relevance in two years at Rocky Top. How does he stack up to other head coaches?

After an 11-win season and an Orange Bowl Victory, Josh Heupel has put himself in great company. Through 26 games as the Head Man, Heupel accumulated 18 wins, including 11 in 2022. But where does he rank among other Head Coaches in Vols history through two years? We take a deeper look. 

Tennessee's previous head coach, Jeremy Pruitt, didn't achieve the same heights as Heupel. Pruitt, in his first 26 games, won 14. However, he only had a Gator Bowl victory, not a New Year's Six victory, and the following nine games featured two wins and seven losses. For Butch Jones, his first 26 games were an even 13-13 record. 

Diving away from recent times, let's look at some Tennessee coaching legends. Peyton Manning's coach, Phillip Fulmer, enjoyed a slightly more successful start, with 20 wins and six losses, including a 1-1 Bowl record, identical to Heupel's. 

For Bob Neyland, perhaps the most storied coach in Volunteer history, it was a 24-1-1 start, a figure almost guaranteed never to be seen again at the beginning of a head coaching tenure, Tennessee or otherwise. 

What is yet to be seen for Heupel is if this success will continue to build and if this program will reach greater heights. Many of the coaches named did continue to build and dominate. For Heupel to etch his name further into Vols lore, he will need to do just that. However, if the 2022 season was any indicator, he would accomplish this, and maybe some. As the team nears Spring Practice, Heupel and the rest of the team are ready to hit the ground running, looking to continue to write a story.

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