It’s been trending this way over the last couple of weeks, but now it appears like it’s inching towards becoming official. According to a report from Pete Nakos of On3, Tennessee is expected to keep defensive line coach Rodney Garner. Garner’s contract was set to expire next month, and it was worth wondering if he would look elsewhere with new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles coming in.
Garner was rumored to Auburn following their hire of Alex Golesh, but Golesh quickly went in a different direction. Garner, who played at Auburn, coached on The Plains from 2013-2020 before joining Josh Heupel’s initial staff at Tennessee in 2021. That run is now expected to continue into a new defensive era in Knoxville.
Garner’s list of defensive line products is too long to list at each of his stops. At Tennessee, that includes names like Matthew Butler, Omarr Norman-Lott, James Pearce and Byron Young. In total, Garner is credited with producing over 35 draft picks during his length career…