Tennessee football: Five positives from Vols hiring LB coach Shelton Felton

1. Track record of success

We say it all the time, a coach’s most important factor is being able to prove success. In Shelton Felton, Tennessee football has hired a guy who has found success everywhere he’s been, and that’s a big deal.

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At Crisp County High School, Felton went 13-1 in 2016, just his second year on the job as head coach. That was the best season in school history and earned him Georgia sports Writers Association Coach of the Year, Recruit GA Coach of the Year and Region 1AAA Coach of the Year. That’s his biggest success.

Before that, however, as a defensive specialist, he was named the 2014 GACA Assistant Coach of the Year for Georgia 6A while serving as co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach at Colquitt County High School. When he joined the Chattanooga Mocs in the college ranks in 2017, he helped create the No. 1 defense in the Southern Conference, allowing just 326.4 yards a game.

Then there are the players. At Crisp County, he developed Markaviest Bryant and Quay Walker into the first two All-Americans in school history. Walker became a four-star recruit who infamously, ironically, spurned the Vols for the Georgia Bulldogs, and Bryant committed to the Auburn Tigers. While at Dooly County, he developed eventual Auburn All-American Montravious Adams.

So it’s safe to say that Felton has a history of producing in his role. As a result, he’s a huge pickup for Tennessee football. Jeremy Pruitt appears to have found an up and comer with strong recruiting ties and an ability to coach. That should play very well going forward.