Josh Heupel sends message to Tennessee fans that traveled to Pitt to cheer on Vols

It goes without saying that Tennessee fans are fired up for what Josh Heupel has brought to the Volunteer program. They’re already frenzied over this year’s team that stands at 2-0 following their OT win at Pittsburgh last weekend. To Heupel, it’s something that means a lot to him and everyone within the program.

Heupel spoke after the 34-27 win over the Panthers about the energy that Tennessee fans brought to that win. In a big game and one that honored a former Vol head coach, Heupel said their effort to be there on the road meant a ton to him, his staff, and his players.

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“For our fans that traveled here, the amount of orange that was inside of that stadium? In particular in a game that honored Coach Majors too? That was awesome to see and the players, staff, and myself appreciate the efforts that our fanbase makes,” said Heupel.

Pitt listed the official attendance in Acrisure Stadium at 59,785. While the Panthers had a large portion of that number, the UT faithful made themselves known. Several made the seven & a half hour trip from Knoxville to Pittsburgh to cheer their team to victory. In what was an important win for the Vols and the second in the ‘Johnny Majors Classic’, Heupel got to see how excited his program’s fans are based on how many made the trek.

Jalin Hyatt reveals why Tennessee players have bought into Josh Heupel

There is full buy-in on what Josh Heupel is doing on Rocky Top. The record in his first season doesn’t reflect the complete culture shift that he has brought to Tennessee. For players like Volunteer wide receiver Jalin Hyatt, he says he’s buying all of what his coach is selling.

Hyatt spoke on Tennessee’s culture and why he and his teammates love playing for Heupel during media on Tuesday. He says it’s all about Heupel’s belief in them as individuals as well as a collective unit.

“I think what it is is that he believes in us. When you have a coach that believes in you and believes in what you can do, it makes your game go to a whole other level,” said Hyatt. “When I was going through my struggles last year, he believed in me. That’s why I go so hard. That’s why this team goes so hard because he believes in us.”

The Volunteer faithful could have cared less about the 7-6 record last season. It wasn’t about the improvement on the field as much as it was about the improvement in the program. The culture and stability became different when Heupel took over. With a 2-0 start this season, their record is continuing to improve as well.

Hyatt and the Vols believe in Heupel to take them to where they want to be as players. They’re all in on what he and his staff want to do to get Tennessee to a massive stage this postseason.

“He knows what we need to do and what we need to accomplish just to get to the level that we want to get to, to play at the level we want to get to, and the places we want to get to,” Hyatt said. “We just want to keep following their path. That’s what it is.”

It wasn’t going to take much to change some of the cultural aspects Butch Jones and Jeremy Pruitt left behind. Even so, Heupel has earned the respect of his players and the people in Knoxville. From here, it’s about turning that commitment to him into next-level results on the field for Tennessee.