Tennessee Announces Additions To Defensive Coaching Staff

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Jan 12, 2026, 9:28 AM

tennessee announces additions to defensive coaching staff

Josh Heupel announced his 2026 Tennessee football coaching staff after firing multiple assistants and reshaping it for new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles. UT announced the staff changes on Jan. 2, three days after the Vols (8-5) lost 30-28 to Illinois in the Music City Bowl to finish a disappointing 2025 season. Heupel fired defensive coordinator Tim Banks and secondary coach Willie Martinez. Outside linebacker coach Levorn Harbin will no longer be part of the on-field coaching staff. Heupel did not retain strength coach Kurt Schmidt, whose contract expires Jan.

31. And he did not retain assistant secondary coach Earnest Thomas, who was not under contract as a support staff member. Heupel hired former Penn State co-defensive coordinator Anthony Poindexter (co-defensive coordinator/secondary), former Penn State assistant Andrew Jackson (edge rushers) and former Ohio State assistant Michael Hunter Jr. (cornerbacks) because of their familiarity with Knowles' defensive scheme. Defensive line coach Rodney Garner and linebackers coach William Inge were retained. Tennessee Football on Friday night announced the hiring of Anthony Poindexter as co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach, Andrew Jackson as LEOs coach and Michael Hunter Jr.

as cornerbacks coach. The three additions were made by Tennessee coach Josh Heupel and his new defensive coordinator, Jim Knowles. “We are excited about the experienced defensive staff we have assembled as we start the New Year,” Heupel said in a press release. “This group has a long, distinguished track record of outstanding recruiting, player development and coaching technique in either the Big Ten or SEC. “They are already in our facility and working hard with Coach Knowles to help restore the standard of defense we expect to play at Tennessee. We would like to formally welcome Anthony, Andrew and Michael to Rocky Top.”

Poindexter spent the last five seasons as the co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach at Penn State, working under Knowles last season. He had four Penn State safeties selected in the NFL Draft, including three in the first three rounds. Jim Knowles wasn’t in Nashville this week for good reason as the veteran defensive coordinator put the finishing touches on his staff. Knowles and Josh Heupel made a trio of hires this week, adding Anthony Poindexter as safeties coach, Andrew Jackson as EDGE coach and Michael Hunter as cornerbacks coach. Defensive backs coach Willie Martinez will not return to Tennessee. Poindexter was the co-defensive coordinator with Knowles this season at Penn State, while also coaching the safeties.

It was the lone season that Poindexter and Knowles had worked together. Now they’ll continue that relationship in Knoxville, set to try and revamp a Tennessee defense that really struggled in 2025. Andrew Jackson will also follow Knowles coming from Penn State. Jackson coached the EDGE position for the Nittany Lions this past season. He spent four seasons at West Virginia before that. Chop Harbin’s status with Tennessee is unclear at this point.

Tennessee was also able to get Michael Hunter away from Ohio State, where he was the assistant defensive backs coach. Hunter was with Knowles at both Oklahoma State and Ohio State. He’ll be immediately tasked with remaking nearly the entire cornerback room with Jermod McCoy, Rickey Gibson, Boo Carter, Colton Hood and Jalen McMurray on the way out. Expect to see the Volunteers very active in the cornerback market. KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee football has bolstered its 2026 defensive staff under new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles with the addition of three new assistant coaches.

The new on-field hires include: Last month Tennessee announced the hiring of Knowles as defensive coordinator. In addition, defensive line coach Rodney Garner and linebackers coach William Inge will return to the staff for the 2026 season. The 2026 defensive staff owns a combined 101 years of Power Four coaching experience with over 70 NFL Draft picks coached. All six have coached in either the College Football Playoff, New Year's Six or BCS with a combined 38 game appearances. Since January 2024, five have coached in the College Football Playoff.

"We are excited about the experienced defensive staff we have assembled as we start the New Year," head coach Josh Heupel said. "This group has a long, distinguished track record of outstanding recruiting, player development and coaching technique in either the Big Ten or SEC. The Tennessee Volunteers new that they needed to make some changes, and this is something that was noted following the bowl game, and they have been doing just that. The Vols let go of two staff members on Thursday, and this was one of the bigger headlines of the day, as they didn't just get rid of their coaches, but they made some... One of the coaches who was let go by the Tennessee Volunteers is Willie Martinez. Martinez served as the Tennessee Volunteers' defensive backs coach for the past five seasons under Josh Heupel.

This was a huge move that many fans have been calling for, but we all knew that Jim Knowles (new defensive coach) would make some changes, and he did just that. He already landed the new guy, and it was a BIG one. "Tennessee is expected to hire Ohio State’s Michael Hunter as cornerbacks coach, sources tell @CBSSports. The ex-NFL DB was assistant defensive backs coach at Ohio State the last two years. Previously worked with new Vols DC at Jim Knowles at both Ohio State and Oklahoma State," said Zenitz in his new X post. The Ohio State Buckeyes coach is one of the best at the position, and has coached some stars, including the best safety in college, Caleb Downs.

This was a home run hire for the Vols after firing the guy with the job, and this will be huge, as they also added Andrew Jackson to their staff (who spent time with... Chris Low predicted this three weeks ago, but signs are showing that Knowles may not be done. Jim Knowles has been hired as the next Tennessee football defensive coordinator, UT announced Dec. 11. Coach Josh Heupel fired defensive coordinator Tim Banks on Dec. 8 following a lousy season defensively.

Heupel opted to pluck Knowles from Penn State to fill the role on his staff. Knowles was the defensive coordinator on Ohio State's national championship team in 2024. The Buckeyes' run to the title included a 42-17 win over Tennessee in a College Football Playoff first-round game. Ohio State held the Vols to 256 yards of offense and only 104 yards passing. OSU had the best scoring defense and total defense in the nation in the 2024 season, allowing 12.9 points and 254.6 yards per game. It ranked third in passing defense (167 yards per game) and rushing defense (87.6 yards per game).

Pennsylvania State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles watches warmups for an NCAA college football game against Florida International on Sept. 6 in State College, Pa. KNOXVILLE — Tennessee football has bolstered its 2026 defensive staff under new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles with the addition of three new assistant coaches, head coach Josh Heupel announced. The new on-field hires include Anthony Poindexter (co-defensive coordinator/secondary), Andrew Jackson (linebackers/edge rushers) and Michael Hunter Jr. (cornerbacks). Last month, Tennessee announced the hiring of Knowles as defensive coordinator.

In addition, defensive line coach Rodney Garner and linebackers coach William Inge will return to the staff for the 2026 season. The 2026 defensive staff owns a combined 101 years of Power Four coaching experience with more than 70 NFL Draft picks coached. All six have coached in either the College Football Playoff, a New Year’s Six bowl, or a BCS championship game with a combined 38 game appearances. Since January 2024, five have coached in the College Football Playoff.

Tennessee Announces Additions To Defensive Coaching Staff

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