College Coaching Carousel: Pruitt looking to revamp Tennessee's D

Things can't get much worse for Tennessee. After going winless in the SEC and 4-8 overall, the Vols cleaned house by firing Butch Jones and are looking to start a new era in Knoxville.

After a somewhat embarrassing head coach search, Tennessee settled on Alabama defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt. He's hoping to have similar success to the man he replaced as defensive coordinator for the Crimson Tide, Kirby Smart. Unfortunately for Pruitt, he's walking into a program where the cupboards are bare.

Offensive philosophy

(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)

Pruitt, a defensive coach through and through, brought along Tyson Helton to run the offense. Helton was the offensive coordinator at Western Kentucky (2014-15) before joining his brother at USC as the passing game coordinator (2016-17).

When he arrived in Knoxville, Helton made it clear he wanted to implement a run-heavy scheme. At Western Kentucky, he had one of the best rushing offenses in college football, finishing first in rushing success rate in 2015. But duplicating that result will be a tall task for a team that ranked dead last in the SEC in yards per carry and 86th in the nation in rushing success rate in 2017.

Jones' spread system is partly to blame, but so is the Vols' lack of talent. Running back John Kelly would've been a perfect fit in the offense had he returned for his senior year instead of declaring for the NFL draft, where he was selected in the sixth round. Luckily, the Volunteers' running backs will be able to run behind sophomore stud Trey Smith, who's one of the best offensive linemen in the country despite being so young.

A big reason for the emphasis on the running game is the lack of clarity at the quarterback position. Pruitt has yet to name a starter as returning starter Jarrett Guarantano, Stanford transfer Keller Chryst, and sophomore Will McBride compete for the job. When Tennessee does put the ball in the air, they'll look to stretch the defense and prevent it from loading the box against the run game.

Defensive philosophy

Even though Pruitt is a defensive guru, he's going to have his work cut out for him in Knoxville.

He'll bring his 3-4 defense from Alabama, meaning that Tennessee will be switching from an even front (4-3) to an odd front (3-4) base defense. However, Pruitt has been known to mix and match his personnel, giving offenses different looks throughout the game.

He may be best known for his pattern-match coverage scheme, and he undoubtedly brought that system to Tennessee. In a pattern-matching system, the defenders' responsibilities in coverage are based on the distribution of the receivers.

Pruitt is inheriting a squad that ranked 70th in points per game allowed and 115th in defensive success rate. Some of that was due to a rash of injuries, particularly at the linebacker position, but a lot of it was also due to a lack of high-end talent. While the defensive scheme will be more sound and better coached than years prior, the Vols' defense lacks the talent to carry out his system to its potential.

Season outlook

With a team he didn't recruit and players who don't fit his system, this season is looking like it'll be a rough one for the famously irritable Pruitt. However, he's planting seeds that should bear fruit in the future.

His defensive scheme has been proven to work with the right personnel, but it'll just take some time to get that personnel to Knoxville. As for the offense, Helton is a rising star, and he should get the best out of the current crop of players.

Even with one of the easier schedules in the SEC, it would be seen as a resounding success if Tennessee eked out a winning record. But don't be surprised if it spends another season or two in the SEC's basement. The lack of talent may be too much to overcome.

The key for Tennessee's future will be Pruitt's ability to recruit, and the early returns there are nice - headlined by 2019 five-star offensive tackle Wanya Morris. But regardless of how well Pruitt fares at injecting new talent, rebuilding this football program will be a long, arduous process. Hopefully, he'll get a long enough leash to see it through.

Other entries in this series:

• Joe Moorhead (Mississippi State)
• Herm Edwards (Arizona State)
• Chad Morris (Arkansas)
• Willie Taggart (Florida State)
• Scott Frost (Nebraska)
• Dan Mullen (Florida)
• Kevin Sumlin (Arizona)
• Chip Kelly (UCLA)

John Owning is a football writer at theScore. He has written for Bleacher Report and Football Insiders. He was also the lead NFL content editor at FanRag Sports. John provides analysis on the Dallas Cowboys for the Dallas Morning News and edits for The Quant Edge. Find him on Twitter @JohnOwning.