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Tennessee football: 10 historic coaching hires that resemble Josh Heupel

By Caleb Calhoun

At left University of Tennessee head football coach Josh Heupel shakes hands with University of Tennessee athletics director Danny White after being presented a jersey, during a press conference announcing his hiring in the Stokely Family Media Center in Neyland Stadium, in Knoxville, Tenn., Wednesday, Jan.27, 2021.Heupel0127 0123
At left University of Tennessee head football coach Josh Heupel shakes hands with University of Tennessee athletics director Danny White after being presented a jersey, during a press conference announcing his hiring in the Stokely Family Media Center in Neyland Stadium, in Knoxville, Tenn., Wednesday, Jan.27, 2021.Heupel0127 0123 /
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Former Florida State University Head Football Coach Bobby Bowden speaks before being presented with the Governor’s Medal of Freedom from Gov. Ron DeSantis, the first person to receive the recognition at the Governor’s Mansion in Tallahassee Wednesday, April 7, 2021.Bobby Bowden Metal Of Freedom 040721 Ts 246
Former Florida State University Head Football Coach Bobby Bowden speaks before being presented with the Governor’s Medal of Freedom from Gov. Ron DeSantis, the first person to receive the recognition at the Governor’s Mansion in Tallahassee Wednesday, April 7, 2021.Bobby Bowden Metal Of Freedom 040721 Ts 246 /

Bobby Bowden. 1976-2009. Florida State Seminoles. 9. player. 804. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis

Record at time of hire: 73-32; Record at Florida State: 304-97-4

Previous schools: 

  • Howard Bulldogs: 1959-1962
  • West Virginia Mountaineers: 1970-1975

Hey, Josh Heupel was coaching at a sleeping giant in the UCF Knights the past three years. Bobby Bowden is famous for how he built a sleeping giant into a powerhouse program in the Florida State Seminoles. Both schools being in Florida is another similarity, but those aren’t the only similarities between the two coaches and their trajectories.

After going 31-6 with Howard, now Samford, Bowden developed into a great offensive coach as an assistant with FSU and the West Virginia Mountaineers in the 1960s. His comparisons to Heupel standout with what happened when he took over WVU as head coach.

At the time, WVU had just gone 10-1 and finished in the top 20 under Jim Carlen, similar to how UCF went undefeated under Scott Frost the year before Heupel took over. Also, like Heupel, Bowden was hired after spending time as an offensive coordinator.

There are some differences, to be fair. FSU lured Bowden away after he had enjoyed his best season at WVU, his final year there, when he went 9-3 in 1976. However, 9-3 is significantly worse than Heupel’s best year, going 12-1 at UCF in 2018. Given what Bowden did at FSU, with two national titles and building a powerhouse, he’s a great guy to draw a comparison to.

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