Tennessee football assistant named minority coach under 45 to watch
Josh Heupel has put together a pretty diverse staff with Tennessee football. A majority of his assistant coaches are minorities, including his defensive coordinator and multiple position coaches. Some are longtime veterans, and others are rising stars in the industry.
Running backs coach Jerry Mack appears to be a rising star. Mack was named one of ESPN’s 45 minority coaches under the age of 45 to watch for future Division I head coaching jobs. He is one of five staff members younger than 45 on UT plus Heupel himself.
New wide receivers coach Kelsey Pope is also a minority coach under 45. However, Mack is the one receiving the hype, and there is a good reason to believe he’s a rising star too. Here’s what was written about the 41-year-old Tennessee football assistant.
"Several industry insiders said Mack is already on the head-coaching track. He has been a head coach at North Carolina Central, where he won three straight MEAC titles (2014 to 2016). Mack has coordinator experience at Rice and has coached receivers, tight ends, quarterbacks and running backs. The Memphis native has worked for college programs in six Southern states."
Given what Mack had to deal with last year, he probably elevated his profile a lot. He inherited a team that lost its top two running backs to the transfer portal and then turned Tiyon Evans into a star, which helped the Vols have success early in the season.
After Evans got hurt, though, and then entered the transfer portal himself, Jabari Small became a star, and Jaylen Wright and Len’Neth Whitehead both emerged. With all three guys back plus two new freshmen, Mack even has more of a chance to show what he can do.
Since his offensive attack is based on the run game, Heupel counts on Mack more than it may seem. Add in his experience as a Memphis native who went to school in Arkansas and has coached there as well as in Texas, Mississippi, Alabama and North Carolina, and he’s clearly a rising star.
Next. Ranking all 25 full-time head coaches in Vols' history. dark
With head coaching experience already, leading the UNC Central Eagles from 2014 to 2017, and offensive coordinator experience with the Rice Owls, Mack has already done it all. He led UNC Central to three straight conference titles, so he has also won. Tennessee football clearly has a rising star in him, so he belongs on this list.