As Tennessee looks to continue their build to remain one of college football's top programs after making the first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff last season, they're reportedly set to bring a veteran presence who has both NFL experience as well as a national title pedigree as a coordinator to the staff.
CBS Sports shares this morning that Heupel and the Vols are adding former Cincinnati Bengals defensive line coach Marion Hobby to the defensive staff.
In addition to his time with the Bengals (2021-24), Hobby also spent time in the NFL working with the defensive lines for the Jaguars and Dolphins as well as with the Saints earlier in his career.
A veteran of both the NFL and college levels, Hobby served as Clemson's co-defensive coordinator and defensive ends coach in 2016 when Dabo Swinney led the Tigers to the national title.
Hobby has also held the defensive coordinator title at Duke (2008-10), and coached the defensive line at Ole Miss for a few seasons from 1999-2004.
The job in Knoxville marks a full-circle moment for the longtime assistant, as he previously served as an assistant strength coach for the Vols in 1998 and played his college ball at Tennessee under the legendary Johnny Majors before going on to be a third-round selection in the 1990 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.