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Another Tennessee assistant coach is looking for a new job as this investigation drags out. Tight ends coach Joe Osovet has interviewed for the vacant UCF receivers coach position, per Bruce Feldman.
Osovet just finished up his first season as a positional coach with Tennessee.
#Tennessee TE coach Joe Osovet is in the mix for the vacant #UCF WR coaching job and has already interviewed for the job, per source.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) January 16, 2021
The optics of this one aren’t great. The move would be a lateral at best, moving from the SEC to the AAC. It’s possible that Osovet would have more offensive responsibility at UCF, but on the surface, this one feels strange if Pruitt is safe.
It’s just the latest news in what has quickly turned into a bizarre offseason at Tennessee. Assistant coaches are now looking around for potential backup plans as Jeremy Pruitt’s 2021 status remains in question. The internal investigation into his staff’s recruiting has been ongoing for weeks now, and nobody seems to know when a final decision is going to be made. As a result, Pruitt has lost several players to the transfer portal and has been unable to fill offensive and defensive line coach vacancies on staff. However, he was able to bring on former Auburn defensive coordinator Kevin Steele as a defensive assistant, which just makes everything that much weirder.
Elsewhere on staff, inside linebackers coach Brian Niedermeyer and receivers coach Tee Martin are working on expiring contracts. So however this investigation ends up, Tennessee will have some work to do.
Osovet is another situation to monitor as this all plays out.