The Tennessee Volunteers had a 10-3 season in 2024. Not bad, considering they finished 9-4 in the previous season. They also made it to the playoffs. Although they lost the game, there were still signs that said, “This team has all the things to do better next season.” The only problem? Their QB Nico Iamaleava’s struggles and some questionable decisions over the course of the season. But let’s just give Nico a break for a moment and see if the team still has what it takes.

Well, Josh Heupel is adding personnel and staff to his backroom staff to rectify the errors that would have been there in the previous season. He hired Alan Williams in his analyst department, who has more than 2 decades of coaching experience. Then he added his new offensive line coach, James Cregg, from LSU, where he bolstered their O-line through dominant performances.

Now, the Tennessee head coach is hiring another seasoned coach as his offensive analyst. Yes, it’s Seth Littrell, the former Sooners offensive coordinator and North Texas head coach from 2016-2022. Josh Heupel’s hiring of Littrell is also significant as both the coaches had previously played together in Oklahoma and won the national championship in 2000. So, naturally, it would look like a valuable addition to the staff, considering both the coaches’ personal chemistry and vast experience. Still, there are some concerns.

RJ Young, a FOX analyst, wasn’t quite impressed with the recent hiring and dismissed any potential improvement prospects with Littrell’s addition. “I don’t know what else Seth Littrell could add to you (Tennessee), except perhaps a new set of eyes, which is always going to be good for the football program… just scanning spring practice and going, ‘What about this guy? Do we think we have space for him? Where can he help us, or even look at that defense? And going to these guys gave me hell. Why don’t we play these guys more?’ I am interested to see. Seth Littrell being hired to Tennessee is going to make them a better football team? I don’t think it’s going to hurt them, but I’m not so sure it’s going to make them better.“

Well, the analyst’s verdict, while harsh, could be backed up in several ways. Take, for example, his last stint as OC and QB coach at the Oklahoma Sooners. Did they improve their offense or QB room, for that matter? It’s undoubtedly a table-thumping no, and here’s why. Oklahoma was ranked 110th in points (21.1) per game. They ranked 126th, which is literally the 9th last position in the FBS Division 1 in yards per game and ranked 83rd (136.1) in rushing yards per game. Their sacks per game (4.2) on their QB was ranked 132nd in the whole country; that’s the third last position in the FBS Division 1. So, if the analysts aren’t quite impressed with his hiring, they may have a point behind that. Then comes the Vols’ quarterback problem.

More problems for Josh Heupel’s QB1?

Well, we all know Nico didn’t have the best of his seasons and is bound to improve a lot in 2025. Still, when you are a quarterback of one of the top SEC teams and don’t even make the top ten list of returning QBs, there are some serious issues you need to ponder. For context, Nico Iamaleava wasn’t selected in Tom Fornelli’s top ten QBs to watch in 2025 and 5 other honorable mentions. But there was not a mention of Nico in those 15 teams. Not even in the honorable mentions. And if you think that this is just one analyst, then you are wrong since this is a trend in recent reports. That have described Iamaleava as already hitting his ‘ceiling’. So, what can Josh Heupel do in such a case?

Well, Josh Heupel might have another star prospect in the pipeline for the 2026 season who is impressing fans and pundits alike. Yes, it’s Faizon Brandon, the 2026 5-star QB who has retained the top spot in overall rankings for some time now. 247 Sports’ Hudson Standish provided a peek into the type of player Brandon is.

“This is somebody who completed 77% of his passes on 214 attempts, 35 passing touchdowns to only two interceptions. Watched his quarterfinal, semifinal, and state championship game, all against MaxPreps Top 100 schools, and he is just an elite game manager. And then, we recently saw him when he came to the All-American Bowl Combine, and I’m not sure if he misplaced a pass on the day. His accuracy at the second and third levels of the defense has gone way up, and you can kind of see it just in that setting—pretty wild.”

Surely, the players will be someone to look out for in the 2026 season. Fortunately, he is currently committed to the Volunteers and has also hinted that he will be that way in the future. Still, we have seen prospects being poached away by rival teams without notice. That should be kept in mind, and the QB should be protected from swaying away at any cost. As for the hiring of Seth Littrell, we can only wait and watch how the initial days and the spring practices play out before coming to any final conclusions.