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Tennessee football: Five things Danny White must avoid in coaching search

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 12: General view of a Tennessee Volunteers flag during a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium on October 12, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 12: General view of a Tennessee Volunteers flag during a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium on October 12, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images) /
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The sun peeks over Neyland Stadium before the University of Kentucky and the University of Tennessee college football game on Volunteer Boulevard in Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2020.Kentucky Vs Tennessee Football 202095971
The sun peeks over Neyland Stadium before the University of Kentucky and the University of Tennessee college football game on Volunteer Boulevard in Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2020.Kentucky Vs Tennessee Football 202095971 /

Well, Rocky Top finally has a new athletic director. Now, it’s onto the next bit of business: finding a new Tennessee football head coach to replace Jeremy Pruitt. Danny White will be in the process of hiring the sixth full-time head coach dating back to 2008 and the eighth coach to lead the program on the sidelines during a game.

How can White avoid the mistakes previous athletic directors made? There were things that Mike Hamilton overvalued in Lane Kiffin and Derek Dooley and things he overlooked. The same holds true for Dave Hart with Butch Jones and Phillip Fulmer with Jeremy Pruitt.

Some things White may value is his prerogative, including head coaching experience and the level of that experience. He can hire an assistant if he wants to as well. However, he has to make sure not to overvalue other things. Given his successful hiring track record, he probably knows it. Here are the five things he must avoid when hiring Tennessee football’s next coach.

5. Factoring in pedigree

This has cost the Vols with three separate hires. Lane Kiffin was the son of Monte Kiffin and studied under Pete Carroll and Pat Hill. He seemed like the perfect hire. To be fair, he may have been just that, but he bolted after a year.

Following Kiffin, Derek Dooley came on board. His selling point was being one of Nick Saban’s top assistants during Saban’s five years with the LSU Tigers while also being the son of legendary Georgia Bulldogs coach Vince Dooley.

Jeremy Pruitt cut his teeth in the North Alabama high school coaching ranks, the son of a legendary Alabama high school coach, and worked under Saban, Jimbo Fisher and Mark Richt. It didn’t do him any good. Being tied to other coaches means nothing if you don’t produce on your own. White needs to know that when finding Tennessee football’s next signal caller.

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