{"id":744998,"date":"2026-07-05T18:02:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-05T18:02:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/744998\/"},"modified":"2026-07-05T18:02:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-05T18:02:10","slug":"where-tennessee-footballs-new-defensive-coordinator-jim-knowles-ranks-in-the-sec","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/744998\/","title":{"rendered":"Where Tennessee Football’s New Defensive Coordinator Jim Knowles Ranks in the SEC"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\"jim<\/a>Tennessee football DC Jim Knowles (Photo via Ryan Sylvia | RTI)<\/p>\n

After a disappointing season on defense in 2026, Josh Heupel made a critical change to that side of the ball. For the first time leading Tennessee football, he fired a position coach or coordinator, letting go of defensive coordinator and safeties coach Tim Banks.<\/p>\n

In response, Heupel went out and landed one of the top available names. With Penn State undergoing a coaching change, Jim Knowles was available after just one year in Happy Valley. Now, he\u2019s joining UT.<\/p>\n

Just how good of a pickup was Knowles, though? While time will tell, and it\u2019s tough to gauge expectations heading into his first year, Steven Lassan of Athlon Sports<\/a> placed him in the top half of the conference during an appearance on That SEC Podcast<\/a>. Knowles clocked in at No. 8 in the SEC.<\/p>\n

Ahead of Knowles are Oklahoma\u2019s Brent Venables and Todd Bates, Texas A&M\u2019s Mike Elko and Lyle Hemphill, Texas\u2019 Will Muschamp, LSU\u2019s Blake Baker, Georgia\u2019s Glenn Schumann, Auburn\u2019s DJ Durkin and Alabama\u2019s Kane Wommack.<\/p>\n

SEC Defensive Coordinators Rankings by @AthlonSteven<\/a><\/p>\n

#1 Brent Venables: \u201cWe saw how much better OU\u2019s defense got last year with BV calling the defense.\u201d<\/p>\n

#2 Mike Elko: \u201cA&M\u2019s defense is going to be really good again.\u201d<\/p>\n

#3 Will Muschamp: \u201cBased on track record & history, he\u2019s\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/b7K4SflK2b<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 SEC Mike (@MichaelWBratton) July 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

More From RTI:\u00a0Three Most Important Games on Tennessee Football\u2019s 2026 Schedule<\/a><\/p>\n

Now, Knowles is looking to teach a new scheme and verbiage within the defense ahead of 2026. He brings multiple players and assistants from Penn State with him to help with the transition, though.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do try to throw a lot at them early,\u201d Knowles said after taking the job. \u201cIt\u2019s a whole, part, whole philosophy. You know, kind of start out, throw a lot at them, see what they can take, shrink it down. Once you figure out their strengths and weaknesses and how they learn, it\u2019s really important how they learn. And then hopefully build it back up to whole on the other end. But how you get to the other end is really based on the players and how they pick it up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Prior to Penn State, Knowles was at Ohio State, conducting one of the top defenses in the country en route to a national title. He was also extremely successful as a defensive coordinator at Oklahoma State and Duke following a six-year stint as Cornell\u2019s head coach.<\/p>\n

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