Tennessee football: Five reasons Josh Heupel won’t leave for Oklahoma Sooners
1. OU is likely not interested in Josh Heupel.
Look, Josh Heupel did an amazing job as head coach of Tennessee football this year, but only people following the program are aware of everything he was dealing with. From a national perspective, the Sooners would have to sell the hire of a 7-5 coach it fired seven years ago to its fans, and even a guy as beloved as Heupel may not be that type of sell.
The fact of the matter is OU is shooting for a bigger name. They could keep Bob Stoops on board and have him return to the full-time job. Heck, there’s a chance they go after Stoops’ brother, Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Stoops, who has done a great job there.
Beyond Heupel and the Stoops family, Cincinnati Bearcats head coach Luke Fickell is the hottest commodity on the market right now, and OU could easily hire him. They may also hire Clemson Tigers defensive coordinator Brent Venables.
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After seven years of offensive success that resulted in lots of Big 12 titles and no national championships, all signs point to OU focusing on defense with this hire. Maybe it’s to prepare them for the SEC, or maybe they’re just trying something new. Either way, a defensive focus means they certainly won’t try to take Heupel from Tennessee football.