Vols Head Coach Josh Heupel Details 'Tennessee Takeover' to Bolster In-State Recruiting Efforts

Josh Heupel discussed various topics during an interview earlier this month with 99.1 The Sports Animal in Knoxville, including the recent "Tennessee Takeover" the Vols employed on the recruiting trail.

"The Tennessee takeover is just our ability to reach out and communicate with the coaches around the state is extremely important," Heupel said. "Over the four-day process, we were able to call every school, communicate with them, and get feedback from them on things that have worked well and things that have not."

Since taking over in Knoxville, Heupel has emphasized in-state recruiting, and the Vols have added multiple preferred walk-ons, and they have landed one key in-state recruit in the 2022 recruiting class.

"Who are the players inside their program," Heupel said about what the Vols learned during the process. "Who are players we don't know about or guys that we do know about? Who are guys that are potential walk-ons?"

"There are different levels of this program, and you might find someone who is interested in coming in and working in video," Heupel continued. "It is important for us to have a dialogue and be real with our coaches here in the state. I can't wait to get out on the road and have an opportunity to meet with them at their campuses."

With June first quickly approaching, Heupel's first recruiting cycle is fixing to kick into overdrive.

"This summer is the first opportunity since I have been here where coaches are going to be able to come on campus," he concluded. "It is an opportunity for us to evaluate their players, but it also an opportunity for us to sit down and get to know each other and sit down and talk football, too, and just be a resource for those guys. It was a great introduction for our coaches and myself to the entire state."

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