The Tennessee Vols had a major win this offseason that Josh Heupel and his coaching staff aren’t getting nearly enough credit for.
Outside of all the coaching movement that happened this offseason (highlighted by Nick Saban’s retirement), one of the biggest stories of the college football offseason, as expected, was the transfer portal.
As has become the norm in college football, a seemingly endless stream of players entered the transfer portal this offseason.
Several formers Vols were among those who entered the portal, including players like defensive lineman Tyler Baron (transferred to Louisville) and cornerback Doneiko Slaughter (transferred to Arkansas).
For the most part, the Vols didn’t lose any players to the portal that they tried to keep in Knoxville.
That includes superstar edge rusher James Pearce, arguably the best defensive player in the nation.
Losing Pearce would’ve been disastrous for the Vols. He’s the type of disruptive pass rusher that any true championship contender needs on their roster.
And yet Heupel and his staff quietly kept Pearce in Knoxville. There were no cryptic tweets like we’ve seen in past years from players. There was no panic from the fan base about whether or not Pearce would stick around for another season. He just simply never stopped being a Vol.
