In Depth Look At Josh Heupel History Before Tennessee Football

John Anthony | Sep 9, 2024

Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel slaps hands with Tennessee offensive lineman Lance Heard (53) after the win over NC State in the Duke's Mayo Classic NCAA College football game on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024 in Charlotte, NC. / Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

All of Vol Nation loves Coach Josh Heupel but many may not truly know all of Coach Heupel's history. So, here's an in-depth look at Heupel's history.

Coach Heupel grew up in Aberdeen, South Dakota raised by his mother who was a high school principal, and his father who was a college football coach at Northern State University. 

At a young age, football was ingrained in him. Heupel and his father would watch game film and study the game of football, during his sophomore season at Central High School Josh was appointed the starting quarterback of the Golden Eagles. As a senior at Central High School Heupel was named South Dakota player of the year. He gained a lot of recognition and attention from colleges but when asked about his recruiting process he said "it seemed I was always the second or third guy on their list”

He eventually chose Weber State University where he stayed for two seasons before transferring after an injury. He transferred to Snow College where he amassed 2,308 passing yards and 28 touchdowns, Heupel gained recognition again and used it to transfer to The University of Oklahoma.

Heupel’s time at Oklahoma would be the catalyst for the Sooners BCS National Championship in 2000. Heupel would amass great success at Oklahoma as he was an All-American, AP Player Of The Year, Walter Camp Award winner, and runner-up in the 2000 Heisman Race. Heupel was then drafted by the Miami Dolphins in 2001 but after a career with injuries, he was released by the Green Bay Packers in 2002 and retired as a player.

Heupel’s career in football was just beginning though as he returned to Oklahoma as a graduate assistant in 2004  before becoming the Tight Ends coach at Arizona in 2005, he then returned to Oklahoma as the Quarterback coach where he coached Heisman Quarterback Sam Bradford. 

Heupel got his first Offensive Coordinator job at Oklahoma but his contract wasn’t renewed in 2015, Heupel would then move on to Utah State and Missouri before landing his next big gig as the head coach at UCF in 2017. During his three-year stint as the head coach at UCF Heupel had a record of 28-8, with the season in 2018 with a record of 12-1. The Knights reached a bowl game every season Heupel was the head coach.

In January of 2021 it was announced that Josh Heupel would be the 27th head coach for the University of Tennessee. In just his second season Heupel led the team to an 8-0 start with wins over the likes of Pitt, LSU, Florida, and Alabama he finished that season with an 11-2 record and a bowl game win over Clemson. 

He won SEC Coach Of The Year in 2022 and  on January 24th 2023 signed a contract extension with the Volunteers until 2029 worth 9 Million dollars. 

As of today, he holds a 29-12 record at Tennessee and with many years left on his contract the future truly looks bright for Josh Heupel and the Tennessee Volunteers.

Other Tennessee News:

• Tennessee Head Coach Josh Heupel Previews Matchup vs NC State
• Tennessee Volunteers Look Like True College Football Contenders
• Josh Heupel Updates Tennessee Injury Report - Rickey Gibson Available vs NC State

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