Tennessee has been known to be a leader, perhaps even a pioneer, in the ever-changing world of college football. Now, the Vols are slipping behind in the latest evolution of the sport. I have the perfect solution.
Oklahoma was the latest school to make an unorthodox hire when the Sooners tabbed Jim Nagy as the school’s general manager of football. Ever heard of such a title in college? Hang tight, you will.
Nagy will lead Oklahoma in “roster building, player evaluation, recruiting and compensation,” according to the school’s website. He spent 18 years in NFL front offices but was more recently the Executive Director of the Senior Bowl. Believe it or not, he’s not the first to go from a non-college football role to heading up an entire program.
Vanderbilt hired former recruiting analyst Barton Simmons to be its general manager in 2021. He is tasked with “overseeing roster development and playing an integral role in recruiting and scouting,” per the school’s website. How about the Vols?
If Tennessee wants to keep up, head coach Josh Heupel and athletic director Danny White had better make a similar move. As it just so happens, I have the perfect candidate.
I’d hire Volquest.com’s Brent Hubbs to be my general manager if I were the power duo. Hubbs may be expensive, but he’d be worth it. He’s covered recruiting since the 1990’s. If he won’t do it, then call his protege, Austin Price, to man the ship. To my knowledge, neither have played football, but they certainly know ball. Whoever the candidate may be, Heupel needs an extra set of hands to manage the ever-changing business model of college football.
Perhaps if the Vols had a general manager, they wouldn’t have had the most recent roster hiccup when cornerback Rickey Gibson III entered the transfer portal this week just days before spring practice. Maybe they wouldn’t have lost 14 players in the transfer portal.
It’s simply asking too much for Heupel to oversee a payroll as well as coach and recruit. There’s another full-time job that needs to be filled, and a recruiting analyst with ties to countless schools would be the perfect fit.
Given their recent history, it’s a bit surprising that Tennessee isn’t ahead of the curve on the general manager trend. After all, Tennessee has led the charge in NIL in many instances. The most noteworthy came when Tennessee beat the NCAA in a legal battle over NIL that ended up redefining how players could and would be paid.
I feel certain that this conversation has been had amongst the power brokers at Tennessee. So why hasn’t it become a reality? It probably comes down to power and security, or lack thereof.
Heupel has seemed reticent to bring in any “outsiders” to help build the Vols to a championship level. He is at least private and, maybe, paranoid about untrusting eyes. That likely comes from his firing at Oklahoma in 2014, but the narrative needs to stop.
Tennessee’s incoming transfer class was a bit lackluster. The Vols brought in just four players from other colleges while their own roster was stripped by other schools. That won’t work longterm.
There has been this pervasive notion that Tennessee is either out of NIL money or the Vols are using NIL funds to protect their own roster. While that may be the case, it looks like Tennessee has been outfoxed in the transfer portal this year. That needs to change. The Vols need a general manager. Hubbs could do the job.
