Tim Banks makes honest admission about taking the Tennessee Vols defensive coordinator job in 2021

Tim Banks was a relatively unknown name -- at least in SEC country -- when he signed on to become the Tennessee Vols' defensive coordinator in early 2021.

Banks was a hired to serve as Josh Heupel's inaugural defensive coordinator after a search that lasted close to three weeks.

Heupel sifted through numerous candidates, including Matt House, Al Washington, Jack Conklin, Kacy Rodgers, and Bryan Brown, among others.

Some of those options had more interest than others. Some options said thanks but no thanks. At the time, Tennessee was coming off one of its worst seasons in program history and was in the early stages of a massive recruiting NCAA scandal. Plus there was the fact that being the defensive coordinator for a Heupel-led offense was viewed by many as an impossible situation (due to Heupel's offensive tempo).

Suffice it to say, the job wasn't very attractive.

Banks, however, was up for the challenge. He agreed to leave Penn State for Rocky Top. And he's since become one of the top defensive coordinators in the SEC.

It's a good thing for Tennessee that Banks didn't listen to some of the folks around him. Banks told ESPN this week that there were a lot of people who told him not to take the defensive coordinator job at Tennessee.

"There were a lot of people who told me not to take the job, but I wasn't afraid," said Banks to ESPN . "I knew at that time that we would have to play a certain style of football, if I'm being honest, to be able to match up. We had to be able to adjust, and this year is no different. You've always got to be able to adjust. It always gets back to, 'What do you need to do to win?' So, yes, there were some things we had to go through to get to this level, and we're still not even close to where we need to be."

Banks took a leap of faith and it's paying off in a huge way (for himself and for the Vols). Tennessee has one of the top defenses in the nation and Banks could be a hot head coaching candidate this offseason.

Sometimes the best advice is the advice you don't take.

Related: Bob Stoops makes his prediction for Tennessee Vols vs Alabama Crimson Tide and then flips his pick