Following that loss to No. 1 Texas, yes, you have every right to be upset. You can even be livid, as the No. 14 Vols totally dropped the ball with a chance to shock the college football world. Josh Heupel was not happy after the final whistle himself, and people are pretty ticked off with him too. Trust me, I get it.
Still, plenty of overreactions have made their way online following the three-point defeat, including some claiming it's time to have a serious conversation about Heupel's future in Knoxville. Come on, you've got to be kidding.
While Tennessee was in dire need of a 'signature win' to get the haters off the Vols' backs, any idea or notion that Heupel is going to be coaching for his job the rest of the campaign is completely and totally absurd after going toe-to-toe with the top-ranked team in the nation. Here's why.
Tennessee's present and future remains bright with Josh Heupel at the helm
To start, Faizon Brandon was making his fourth career start for the Vols. This was an 18-year-old kid in his first SEC action, too. He was way off his game, but you've got to give credit to the Texas defense for that. On top of that, Brandon never had a prayer of putting together a strong performance with the offensive line laying an egg. Giving up 10 sacks was unacceptable from Glen Elarbee's unit.
Brandon is only going to get better, and there's every reason to believe the signal-caller can help get the Vols to the College Football Playoff in the next year or two. Even the biggest of Tennessee haters can't argue with the fact that Brandon is going to be a stud down the road.
Elsewhere, guys like David Sanders Jr., TK Keys, Gabriel Osenda and others highlight the incredibly young talent (and 5-stars) on this team. Oh, and for 2027, Tennessee gave 5-star running back David Gabriel Georges a monster NIL deal worth around $6 million to commit to the Vols over Ohio State and many others. The nation's No. 2 RB will be ready to be electric from the moment he sets foot on campus.
Can you imagine him and DeSean Bishop working together next season? Yeah, good luck to opposing defenses trying to contain them, especially with Heupel working to put them in the best positions possible to succeed.
With all that said, the deflated feeling people are dealing with right now is similar to what happened last year in the defeat to Georgia. Tennessee had a great chance to pull off the stunner, but the defense couldn't stop a nosebleed. This time around, the defense was great thanks to Jim Knowles, but the offense sputtered at the worst possible time.
This is all a process, though, and writing off Heupel would be a huge mistake. Danny White has invested big time in him, giving Heupel all the resources to put together a CFP-contending team. One loss to Texas at home, with a true freshman QB starting, doesn't change that. It's understandable that patience might be running thin for some of you, but now is not the time to turn your back on Heupel and what he's hoping to get done soon enough with this team.
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