Blocking Out the Noise: Like Last Year, Josh Heupel is Taking This Season One Day at a Time

Entering year one at Tennessee, Josh Heupel had more things going on that simply getting his team ready to compete Week one against Bowling Green. He was

Entering year one at Tennessee, Josh Heupel had more things going on that simply getting his team ready to compete Week one against Bowling Green. 

He was taking over for a program that had lost more to the transfer portal than any team in the country and an ongoing NCAA investigation. The buzz around Tennessee football was far from positive, and Heupel had his work cut out for him to turn a tremendously shallow roster into a competitive SEC squad. 

But he did just that. Right away the Tennessee offense showed potential, and after Hendon Hooker logged his first couple of starts, you could start to see how the Vols could get back on track. Granted, there was clearly still work to do. Work that Josh Heupel is in the process of doing to make UT a top-tier SEC East team, but Tennessee's potential over the course of the next couple years is a subject for another day. 

Let's focus back on last year. As mentioned above, Heupel had a rocky road ahead of him, but he rolled right along. And he did so by blocking out the negativity surrounding the program of which he just became the centerpiece. 

This year, the 'noise' around the Tennessee program is vastly different. There is no mention of transfers leaving or an ongoing NCAA investigation, but rather how can Josh Heupel, Hendon Hooker and Cedric Tillman take the next step to make Tennessee a Top-25 team. 

In other words, a lot of eyes are on Tennessee to succeed this year whereas they were on Tennessee to fall apart in 2021. A better problem to have? Definitely. But still, high expectations can be intimidating. 

The catch here, though, is that although the buzz surrounding Tennessee is much different in 2022, Josh Heupel's approach to the season is the same. 

"The outside noise will have nothing to do with who we are this fall either," Heupel said. "We have to do a great job of continuing on this journey, competing, finishing our summer workouts here next week, then having a great training camp doing it one day at a time."

The 'one day at a time' mindset worked last year for Heupel, as the team gravitated toward him quickly. 

"The first day of practice," Cedric Tillman answered when asked what the moment was he knew that Josh Heupel's offense could do well. Heupel's way of doing things immediately instilled confidence in his players, leading to more confidence and success on the field. 

Don't get it wrong, Tennessee and Heupel do not mind the hunger from the fanbase and the high expectations, as they have those themselves. But, it's not going to get them out of rhythm. 

"I don't want to be anywhere where there isn't hunger to be better. The expectations are never going to be higher outside of the building than they are inside of the building," Heupel said.

Heupel further notes the importance here of blocking out that noise, adding the parallel to last season and how they were successful at doing so. 

"Getting our kids to understand, not soak in the outside noise... They're going to hear it, they're going to see it, but it changes the way you strain, focus, go about your daily habits," Heupel added. 

"A year ago what was being said outside of our program had nothing to do with who and what we were as a program - when I came up here for Media Day a year ago - to who and what we were when we opened up the season last fall and how we competed every single week."

A grueling SEC schedule awaits the Tennessee Volunteers this season, with road matchups against Georgia and LSU along with home swings versus Alabama, Florida and Kentucky on the docket. We'll see how Heupel and co. can potentially build off a successful year one with the program. 

And this year, one thing's for sure: all eyes are on one of the fastest and most exciting offenses in the country. 

Photo Credit: Saul Young of Knoxville News Sentinel

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