Josh Heupel names his proudest accomplishment so far as the head coach of the Tennessee Vols

Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel was asked this week at SEC Media Days about his proudest accomplishment so far as the head coach at UT.

Heupel didn't mention the number of games he's won, the big wins against Florida, LSU, and Alabama in 2022, or his two bowl game victories (Orange Bowl and Citrus Bowl).

Instead, the former Oklahoma Sooners quarterback pointed to the culture that's been created at Tennessee over the last three years.

"I think the culture that we've built," said Heupel to WATE's Reece Van Haaften. "The amount of leadership that we have inside of our locker room.

"We've had a lot of successes. There's some things that we wish we would've changed on certain game days. But the trajectory, continuity, connection that we have inside of our program -- our best is still coming. And I couldn't be more excited to go chase it with these guys this fall."

Heupel echoed those same sentiments during his opening statement at the main stage of SEC Media Days on Tuesday.

"Proud of the culture that we've built...we got unbelievable players that care about the people around them and attack every single day the right way," said Heupel. "And they do it right on the field. They do it right in the meeting room, but they do it right in the classroom as well and in our community."

Heupel is extremely protective of the culture that he, his staff, and his players have created at Tennessee.

And understandably so.

Culture is everything in college football. It's the lifeblood of a championship program. And Heupel, in a short amount of time, has managed to build a culture at Tennessee that's positive while also demanding accountability. That culture is why the Vols have a really good chance to make some noise in the College Football Playoff in the not-so-distant future.

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