Josh Heupel ponders Tennessee football changes, starting with Tim Banks

Josh Heupel got to the postgame podium faster than he ever has as a Tennessee football coach.

He had a two-word message to review the Vols’ 45-24 loss to Vanderbilt: “Extremely disappointing.”

Heupel said it three times during his brief opening statement and few more during a somber postgame press conference.

Tennessee fans who crossed their arms in disgust throughout the second half murmured saltier words on their way out of Neyland Stadium following the Nov. 29 regular-season finale.

It marked the first time those fans had seen the Vols (8-4, 4-4 SEC) lose three home games in a season since Heupel’s debut campaign in 2021. And they hadn’t seen UT lose to Vanderbilt (10-2, 6-2) since 2018.

Heupel faced quick-fire questions about the lackluster performance and especially the uncertain offseason ahead. How he’s going to fix UT’s struggling defense was at the top of the list.

“The performance we had tonight is not anywhere near the standard of what Tennessee football is,” Heupel said when asked if defensive changes are needed. “… It’s my job to evaluate everything inside of our program. I told our players that we’ve had some disappointing results, but the second half was extremely disappointing – coaches and players, not just one.”

Will Josh Heupel give Tim Banks a chance to fix defense?

The future of defensive coordinator Tim Banks could be in jeopardy. Granted, he got a contract extension this offseason that pays him $2.15 million annually through the 2027 season, plus bonuses. And Heupel has never fired an assistant coach in his head coaching career.

But Banks’ defense has allowed 28.8 points per game this season, barely better than the 29.1-point average from Heupel’s first season. That indicates either the start of a grueling cycle or outright regression.

Vanderbilt gained 582 yards of total offense, the most allowed by Banks’ defense all season. The Vols often looked lost when quarterback Diego Pavia scrambled for big gains, and they missed tackles when they reached him and other Commodore ball-carriers.

Last season, Banks was a finalist for the Broyles Award, given to the top assistant in college football, after the Vols had a historically strong defense. That may earn him some slack from Heupel, but fans will want a scapegoat.

There was at least a hint that Heupel may give Banks the benefit of the doubt.

“There’s been a lot of things that we’ve had to deal with in the beginning (and) middle parts of the season,” Heupel said. "... I thought we took some steps during the course of the year. Guys were thrust into some roles probably earlier than you would want."

Heupel didn't go into detail. But it was evident that he was, in part, referring to All-America cornerback Jermod McCoy’s torn ACL in January and starting cornerback Rickey Gibson’s season-ending injury in Week 1.

Heupel earned right to steer Vols, but some roads are dead ends

In the big picture, Heupel summed up his team’s defensive performance like this: “Guys competed extremely hard. We didn’t always play extremely smart.”

That sounds like a coaching problem, either a coordinator or another assistant coach. But youth may also be the culprit. This was the youngest team of Heupel’s tenure with freshmen and redshirt freshmen making up about half the roster.

Either way, Heupel has a lot to think about and a short time to consider his options for changes.

The early signing period for the 2026 recruiting class is Dec. 3-5. The Vols will get their bowl invitation on Dec. 7. They’ll play that game before the transfer portal opens on Jan. 2.

And the coaching carousel around college football will jostle staffs over the next few weeks. The question is how many changes Heupel is willing to make, or how many changes will happen to him by circumstance.

“For our personnel evaluation, we’ll do that as an entire program. I’ll certainly take a hard look at all of it,” Heupel said. “… We’ll have a chance to meet with our guys and move forward as a program. (We will) revisit the season and look backwards before we look forwards.”

ADAMS: Vanderbilt, Diego Pavia shake Tennessee football to its core

Heupel might not like what he sees in the rearview mirror. But whether that determines where he steers the Vols program is up to him. He's earned that right after posting a 73-27 record in his first 100 games as a head coach, including a 45-19 mark at Tennessee.

But after a gut-wrenching loss to end a frustrating regular season, he can’t afford to make a wrong turn.

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email [email protected]. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Josh Heupel repeated 'extremely disappointing' after Tennessee loss