2. Hiring Tee Martin as wide receivers coach, passing game coordinator and assistant head coach
The guy who won the national championship against the Florida State Seminoles the year before Chris Weinke won it with Florida State is No. 2 on this list. Of course, that guy was Tennessee football’s quarterback.
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So now Jeremy Pruitt has an assistant coach and an athletic director who have already done at UT what he is trying to do. That’s a big deal, and bringing Tee Martin back to Knoxville is one of the biggest positives for the Vols.
As a pure Xs’ and O’s wide receivers coach, Martin may actually be a downgrade from David Johnson. But the UT legend who has spent the last seven years with the USC Trojans brings a huge positive in numerous other ways.
The biggest one is recruiting. Martin is a proven recruiter and two-time national recruiter of the year. His pipeline into the state of Georgia is a huge plus for the Vols, especially since that’s where Pruitt wants to focus his efforts anyway.
But Martin also has experience on his own coaching different positions. He was a successful offensive coordinator for USC and considered a rising star until last year’s disaster. With experience coaching receivers and quarterbacks at different stints throughout his college career, he’s more than qualified for his role to coach receivers and be the passing game coordinator here.
Finally, like Weinke, Martin brings championship experience. He was also an NFL backup, for what it’s worth. But being a champion on Rocky Top, and the most recent one, brings a level of cache that makes him a very valuable addition to the staff. Martin coming home is also huge for morale.