Tennessee DC Hunt Ends With Alabama OLB Coach Sal Sunseri

Tennessee, Alabama May Keep Trading Coaches Until The End Of Time

Sal Sunseri's Tennessee Deal Near SEC's Biggest, Vinnie Sunseri Staying At Alabama

The Tennessee Volunteers have officially announced the hire of Alabama Crimson Tide outside linebackers coach Sal Sunseri as their new defensive coordinator. He takes over for Justin Wilcox, who was hired away by the Washington Huskies. Said coach Derek Dooley of Sunseri:

Sal has had unparalleled success over the last decade in not only contributing to team and unit success, but also in his ability to motivate and develop elite individual talent. His combination of defensive knowledge, recruiting success, high-energy personality, ability to connect with players, and personal integrity and character make him an exceptional fit for Tennessee.

According to reports, his salary will net him $2.4 million over three years, placing him among the SEC's most well-compensated defensive coordinators.

The good news for Tide fans: safety Vinnie Sunseri reportedly doesn't plan to switch Third Saturday in October allegiances along with his father. Sunseri the swifter is expected to contribute heavily to Alabama's title defense campaign.

For more on the parties involved, visit Tennessee blog Rocky Top Talk and Alabama blog Roll Bama Roll.

Sal Sunseri To Be Next Tennessee Defensive Coordinator, According To Report

The Tennessee Volunteers have finally gotten a bit of stability in the ranks, according to a report. Austin Ward of the Knoxville News Sentinel reports the Vols have hired Alabama Crimson Tide outside linebackers coach Sal Sunseri to be their next defensive coordinator, replacing Justin Wilcox, who left for the Washington Huskies.

@Vols_Beat According to a UT source, Alabama outside linebackers coach Sal Sunseri is the new defensive coordinator for the Vols.

The move isn't a surprise, if true.

At Alabama in 2011, Sunseri coached part of one of the best defenses in college football history. Well, part of three pretty great defenses in a row, actually.

Before joining Bama in 2009, Sunseri coached with the Carolina Panthers for seven years, preceded by stints with the Michigan St. Spartans and LSU Tigers. He has three years of defensive coordinator experience, two at Alabama A&M and one at Illinois State. He also spent one year and one game as a head coach in the early '90s.

His son Vinnie Sunseri plays for the Tide and is expected to move into a starting role next year, so there's a story line for you.

For more on the parties involved, visit Tennessee blog Rocky Top Talk and Alabama blog Roll Bama Roll.

Buddy Green The Next Tennessee Defensive Coordinator Candidate

Another day, another name for the Tennessee Volunteers defensive coordinator job. The latest is Navy Midshipmen defensive coordinator Buddy Green, who's interviewing on Thursday according to the Washington Post's Gene Wang.

Twice nominated for the Broyles Award, which goes to the nation's top assistant coach, Green's been at Navy for 10 years. He has experience in Tennessee, having been the head coach at UT-Chattanooga for six years, along with experience in the southeast at Auburn and his alma mater, N.C. State.

In the past five years, Navy's ranked as high as No. 34 in total defense (but as low as No. 99). In 2011, they ranked No. 86. Hard to gauge what that means, of course, since an entirely different sort of athlete chooses to attend Navy as opposed to SEC schools.

Green would follow Alabama's Sal Sunseri, former Miami coach Randy Shannon and former Illinois coach Ron Zook on the list of reported candidates to replace Justin Wilcox, though Green does appear to be the furthest along in the process.

For more on the parties involved, visit Tennessee blog Rocky Top Talk.

Sal Sunseri Is Tennessee's Top Defensive Coordinator Target, According To Reports

Now that Alabama Crimson Tide outside linebackers coach Sal Sunseri is finally done with his 2011 work, it's time to ramp up reports of the Tennessee Volunteers seeking his services. The Vols lost defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox to the Washington Huskies, and rumors of Randy Shannon and Ron Zook coming aboard never amounted to much.

Tennessee blog Rocky Top Talk thinks Sunseri might be the one:

I'd say this is probably going to happen. We are too close to National Signing Day and too far from the resignation of Justin Wilcox and Peter Sirmon to make waiting any longer a viable option. Tennessee is expecting 8-10 official visitors (plus some unofficials) this weekend, and you'd think that having a coordinator hired would be a check mark on the right side of the ledger for those guys.

Would he be willing to leave for the promotion? Sunseri's son Vinnie Sunseri, a rising sophomore, plays defensive back for the Tide, but son Tino Sunseri plays quarterback for the Pittsburgh Panthers, and you don't hear anybody saying he'll try to merge Alabama and Pitt into a single school so he can rally his many sons together onto one roster. He'd also have to convince Tino to play defense. Tino has much experience at dealing with sacks, so he might be good at linebacker. Who knows. I say all this to say he probably would be willing to accept a promotion at another school. Thanks for listening.

Before joining Bama in 2009, Sunseri coached with the Carolina Panthers for seven years, preceded by stints with the Michigan St. Spartans and LSU Tigers. He has three years of defensive coordinator experience, two at Alabama A&M and one at Illinois State. He also spent one year and one game as a head coach in the early '90s.

For more on the parties involved, visit Tennessee blog Rocky Top Talk and Alabama blog Roll Bama Roll.

Ron Zook Rumors Include Auburn, Tennessee Somehow

Could Tennessee or Auburn really be going after Ron Zook as defensive coordinator?

Randy Shannon Apparently Not Tennessee Defensive Coordinator

Despite receiving a welcome from at least one Tennessee player, Randy Shannon doesn't appear to be the next Vols defensive coordinator at the moment.

Washington Hires Coaches Justin Wilcox, Peter Sirmon From Tennessee

Washington has hired Tennessee defensive coaches Justin Wilcox and Peter Sirmon.