Let’s go back to the 2021 Tennessee Volunteers for a minute. Stuck between NCAA investigation and penalties, the current AD Danny White inherited a mess from former AD Phillip Fulmer. To speed up his recovery project, he brought in the football HC he had dubbed, “One of the most innovative minds in all of college football” – Josh Heupel. But the latter entered a difficult situation with their players leaving to the NCAA transfer portal from an already-thin roster. Yet, the HC believed, “In a very, very, very bright future for Tennessee football.” But he also knew, “There’s a minor speed bump that we’re going through.” Still, the very next year, he silenced the murmurs who did not believe the Vols could turn a page much less turn a tide with an 11-2 improvement. The result? His hype grew in the orange bubble.

By 2024, he almost completed his promise with a playoff appearance. No doubt, he had also won the hearts of the Vols fans over the years. But then came a test for him in the name of Nico Iamaleava. The QB helped Tennessee reach the playoffs, becoming a fan favorite. So much so, that the $2M/ year NIL deal he signed as a high school senior was no longer sufficient for him. His camp asked for re-negotiations to $4M. Tennessee couldn’t agree. The next thing we knew, he was skipping practices and meetings before their Spring Game and the very next day, Heupel announced that they are “Moving on” from Nico. Interestingly, that was not his only message to the Vols circle.

During QB’s departure, the HC made a calculated statement– “There’s no one that’s bigger than the Power T. That includes me.” And that was it. That was enough to bring the Tennessee fans to his side even if they originally didn’t approve letting go of one of the most important players in their team. As it turns out, that “right decisions for the right reasons” as White puts it, just might have saved Heupel’s future at Knoxville for long, and by the way, it had not much to do with their playoff appearance.

In yesterday’s episode of Josh Pate’s College Football Show, the analyst didn’t mince words. “I would bet you, I can’t prove this, but I would bet, that if you pulled Tennessee fans just prior to the kickoff of that playoff game. They don’t know they’re gonna get blown out. They just know they’re in the playoff. I bet Josh Heupel’s job approval rating is higher now than it was at the kickoff of that game. And I’m gonna tell you why– ‘Cause they stood up to Nico Iamaleava and his camp and told him ‘Goodbye’. And you’d have an opinion about that if you lived in Spokane, New Washington, but I promise you the opinion in and around Knoxville, Tennessee was much different.

“They love it. And they acknowledged that it may set them back this year. They’re hopeful it doesn’t. But if it cost him a win or two this year for the greater good of the stability and integrity of the program, they were proud,” Josh Pate said. “And I think they approve of him because of that. Also, he’s won a whole lot, there’s that. So, if Heupel was 50-50, that Nico thing would’ve sounded much different. But he’s not. He’s already secured, job security-wise, but also he’s resurrected Tennessee football.”

And according to Pate’s polls, Heupel’s approval rating just hit 80%. Fans aren’t blind. They know what this move risks. But they also know who dragged them out of the Butch Jones wilderness and made Neyland Stadium electric again. In fact, during this year’s Nashville stop for the Big Orange Caravan, held April 30 at Geodis Park, White referenced to the “Hard decision” Heupel had to make and how the fans reacted to it.

“Our fans really get it. We need to operate the right way. We need to build the right kind of team chemistry and team culture, locker room culture and all those things. I know (Heupel) is really excited about the guys he’s got in the locker room and the guys he’s got in his quarterback room.” And the guy he has in the QB room is none other than a UCLA transfer who entered the transfer portal after Nico’s arrival at Pasadena.

Josh Heupel is currently 37-15 overall with Tennessee and is looking for a new chapter in 2025 with former App State QB Joey Aguilar, who transferred to UCLA. He had to hit the portal once more after Nico Iamaleava became a Bruin. But this 6’3, 220-pounder isn’t bad. Across two seasons at App State, he threw for 6,760 yards and 56 TDs. And now, he’s expected to lead the Vols.

But there’s caution. Joey Aguilar might have thrown over 3,000 yards in each of his two collegiate seasons. But the SEC is a whole different game. ESPN’s Jake Wimberly gave a cautious thumbs up for Nico’s replacement— “It looks like, I mean, at least on paper, that if he doesn’t turn the b— over, he’s the kind of guy that can kind of keep things together. He can keep things together, you know.” But for Heupel, his new QB has the raw skills.

“He’s accurate and on time in the intermediate passing game. [He] has the ability to use his feet to extend plays, but you can use him in the quarterback run game, too.” While Tennessee was dealing with its soap opera, there’s another storyline brewing in the SEC involving Josh Heupel.

Josh Heupel gets in the center of Oklahoma HC conversation

Just when you thought it couldn’t get spicier, the SEC threw in a curveball. After Oklahoma’s dismal losing season last year, Brent Venables is treading in murky waters. While school president Joseph Harroz Jr. and AD Joe Castiglione are still voicing their support, the 2025 season is going to be a make-or-break season for the Sooners’ HC. And if he messes up? There’s someone who could potentially fit his shoes very well. And this is where the Josh Heupel connection comes in.

Josh Heupel is Oklahoma royalty. As a QB, he won them a natty in his second year with the program in 2000 and ended as a runner up in the year’s Heisman trophy race. Then he went on to join the staff as a grad assistant in 2004. He left and returned in 2006, where he coached the Sooners’ QBs till 2010 before being promoted to an additional co-OC role from 2011 to 2014.

So yeah, as longtime CFB analyst Berry Tramel said, “He’d be the first call, I assume. I have no idea if Josh would entertain the notion or accept. I have no idea. I do know this: he’s got a lot of, he still has a lot of ties.” The question is whether Josh Heupel would leave Knoxville for Norman.

Tennessee’s been good to him. He just dropped a 10-3 season. The Vols got a backbone in Josh Heupel who’s not afraid to say no to ego and yes to culture. For now, everything is shrouded in mystery. But the outcome of 2025 will give us clearer answers.