Clay Goes Off On Vols’ Hiring Search That Ultimately Landed Josh Heupel

The Tennessee Vols have officially become the University of Central Florida football team of Tennessee. They have their new head coach, Josh Heupel from UCF, after hiring new athletic director Danny White from UCF. Heupel had a $3,593,750 buyout at UCF and White’s was $2.5 million. After all is said and done, the Vols are expected to have paid around $6.1 million in buyouts to snag the coach and AD. According to the Orlando Sentinel, that buyout could climb if Heupel brings along his assistants, who also had buyouts.

Clay wasn’t having it, especially now that UCF can go out and throw around Tennessee’s money for a new coach.

Paying millions of dollars for a brand new AD — who conducts a “search” — and then hires the coach at his old school is like going to prom with your cousin. Which makes Josh Heupel the perfect hire for Tennessee.

— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) January 27, 2021

So Central Florida is about to get $6 million in buyout money from Tennessee for an AD and a head coach and they are going to hire a better coach than Tennessee to replace Josh Heupel with that money. Typical Vol football.

— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) January 27, 2021

You never even reach out to Kiffin, Freeze or Chadwell. You let it come down to money over Franklin and you pay $6 million in buyout dollars for UCF’s AD & coach? Absolute & utter incompetence. I feel sorry for Tennessee fans to have to deal with 15 years of this.

— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) January 27, 2021

Heupel was 28-8 at UFC from 2018-20, finishing the 2018-19 seasons ranked in the final AP polls. In 2020, his Golden Knights program was 6-4 and finished with a loss in the Boca Raton Bowl.

The Vols fired head coach Jeremy Pruitt with cause after investigating illegal recruiting practices that included allegedly giving cash to recruits via McDonald’s bags. Pruitt’s attorney has said his client wants his $12 million buyout. That case appears headed for a courtroom, while UT has just invested at least $6.1 million to hire White and Heupel. If the Pruitt suit succeeds, UT will have to pay over $18 million in buyouts alone.

Add it all up and Clay appears to be officially fed up with the Vols program.

Welcome to Rocky Top, @coachjoshheupel!

— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) January 27, 2021