Jimmy Brumbaugh’s time on Rocky Top didn’t even last half the season.

If you missed the big news out of Knoxville this morning, Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt dismissed the team’s defensive line coach on Sunday.

During his Monday press conference, Pruitt officially announced the news and offered up the following comments on his decision to move on from Brumbaugh after just four games working together.

“Yesterday I decided to make a change at the d-line position,” Pruitt said. “Coach Brumbaugh done a really nice job for us, worked his tail off. Sometimes, from a philosophical standpoint, things are just not a fit, and it just didn’t work out for us. So I decided to do that and I’m going to coach the d-line for the rest of the season.”

Brumbaugh was hired by Tennessee this offseason from Colorado. He signed a two-year deal upon his arrival on Rocky Top.

Why did Pruitt make this move now?

The Tennessee coach was asked that question.

“Well, if it’s not working out, it’s better to just do it right now,” Pruitt answered. “Me and Jimmy had a really good conversation and, unfortunately, probably because of the COVID circumstance, when you are a new coach and you don’t have a chance to be around your players in March, April, May, and limited in June, it puts you at a disadvantage.

“This is not a knock on Jimmy whatsoever, he is one of the most knowledgeable guys I’ve been around and he’ll do a good job wherever he goes. Just felt like something we needed to do and we did it.”