Defensive Line Coach Rodney Garner Signs Extension with Tennessee Football

During all of the roster and staff chaos, the Vols have retained veteran defensive line coach Rodney Garner.

Tennessee Defensive Line Coach Rodney Garner during an SEC football game between Tennessee and Kentucky at Kroger Field in Lexington, Ky. on Saturday, Nov. 6, 2021. Kns Tennessee Kentucky Football | Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Tennessee Volunteers football program is in the midst of roster and staff renovations in a sense,

Players are hitting the portal, and the coaching staff is being shaken up a bit, primarily on the defensive side of the ball.

Double-digit players have entered the portal and/or expressed their intentions of doing so.

The Vols are already on the prowl looking for potential upgraded replacements.

Many of the players heading out have been from the defensive side of the ball, which is in line with everything as there has been a change at the defensive coordinator position. Tennessee brought in Jim Knowles to replace Tim Banks, who is now at Auburn.

Josh Heupel and Jim Knowles have made a few moves with the defensive staff but have also retained a couple of guys as well.

Coach Wiliam Inge, who acted as interim DC for the bowl game is being retained as the LB coach, but there is one that may have been a bigger retainment, respectfully to Coach Inge.

Tennessee football legendary defensive lineman coach Rodney Garner has not only been retained but signed an extension with a nice built-in raise.

The new contract will run through 2027 and come with a nice bump in pay of $100,000, which will have Garner at a million-dollar salary.

Coach Garner has a very reputable background as a coach that develops talent and gets guys to the next level. The success that stems off of that is a built-in recruiting tactic allon it's own.

Garner has spent time coaching in Athens at UGA and in the state of Alabama at Auburn, which is where Garner himself, graduated from.

This is the second stint for Garner at Tennessee as his first time coaching in Knoxville goes all the way back to the 1990's.

Garner's NFL Production

Dec 21, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Atlanta Falcons linebacker James Pearce Jr. (27) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Coach Garner has sent many young men to the next level to play the game of football. Let's take a quick look at some of the names, and where they were drafted.

- James Pearce Jr. by Atlanta Falcons
- Derrick Brown by Carolina Panthers
- Richard Seymour by New England Patriots
- Charles Grant by New Orleans Saints
- David Pollack by Cincinnati Bengals

Just to name a few off of the long list of players than Garner has sent to the league.

This was a very positive thing that the Vols were able to get done. The future benefits from this should be evident.

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