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Tennessee losing coordinator to Big Ten program, per report
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Tennessee will need to add a special teams coordinator this offseason to the staff of Josh Heupel. According to multiple reports, special teams coordinator and outside linebackers coach Mike Ekeler will be heading to Nebraska.
Brent Hubbs with On3 Sports was the first to report the news of Ekeler’s departure from Tennessee. Ekeler previously spent 2008-10 in Lincoln as a member of Bo Pelini’s Nebraska staff.
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Ekeler joined Heupel’s initial staff in Knoxville in 2021 and has served as the special teams coordinator and OLBs coach throughout his time with the Vols. He also held the coordinator position at North Texas and Kansas during his time as a coach and also spent time at Georgia, UNC, LSU, Oklahoma and USC as an assistant.
Ekeler now leaves behind a void at Tennessee but will be a key piece to Matt Rhule’s staff moving forward. Ed Foley, a longtime assistant of Rhule’s, was brought by the head coach to Lincoln in 2023, but things have not worked out for Nebraska’s special teams unit.
The Huskers averaged just 18.6 yards per kick return and 4.9 yards per punt return this season, along with missing 6 field goals for a 68.4% conversion rate on field goals. That kicking percentage ranked 102nd nationally, and that was just the tip of the iceberg.
Nebraska’s bowl game included a cacophony of special teams miscues, including a blocked punt and a blocked PAT. Rhule publicly said it was time for a “complete and total overhaul” of special teams after the bowl game, and he has that with Ekeler.
Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.
