ALTOONA, Pa. -- After a five-year stint at Penn State, safeties coach and co-defensive coordinator Tim Banks will be joining the coaching staff at Tennessee as the defensive coordinator.
It was reported earlier Monday, Banks and the Volunteers were finalizing the details for him to lead the defense,
Sources: Tennessee is finalizing a deal to hire Penn State co-defensive coordinator Tim Banks as the school’s new DC. Banks has extensive DC experience, including at Illinois, Cincinnati and Central Michigan.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) February 15, 2021
Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel announced the hiring Monday night.
"Tim brings great energy, passion and experience to the Tennessee football family," Heupel said in a statement. "I know our student athletes are going to enjoy playing for him. We are fortunate to have someone with Tim's experience and caliber leading our defense."
His departure marks the third departure of the off-season for the Nittany Lions as Banks heads to the SEC. Prior to Banks leaving, former offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca was let go before tight ends coach Tyler Bowen left the program to take a position on Urban Meyer's staff in Jacksonville.
The loss of Banks is sure to be felt both on and off the field as he was an integral part of recruiting for the Nittany Lions especially in Michigan where he hails from. Banks is responsible for leading the recruitment of Detroit product Jaylen Reed who signed with Penn State as a member of the 2021 recruiting class.
Being a defensive coordinator isn't something new to Banks who held the same position at Illinois prior to joining James Franklin's staff at Penn State. Before joining the staff at Illinois, Banks was the co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach at Cincinnati from 2010-11 after spending three seasons as the defensive coordinator at Central Michigan.
While a member of Penn State's staff, Banks helped in the development of Marcus Allen, Troy Apke, and Nick Scott. all of whom are on NFL rosters and have seen extensive playing time while in the league.
Tennessee wasn't the first place Banks was tied to this off-season as there were rumors circulating around the program he was in consideration for the defensive coordinator position at Michigan which ultimately went to Mike Macdonald.
Banks and Heupel are inheriting a program in distress with the Volunteers especially on the defensive side of the football where many key players have declared early for the NFL Draft, transferred out or entered the transfer portal since finishing with a 3-7 record in 2020.
With the position, Banks gets a significant raise as his deal is for three years and he will make $1.3 million in 2021, $1.4 million in 2022 and $1.5 million in 2023. To put that in perspective, his fellow co-defensive coordinator at Penn State, Brent Pry made $786,000 according to the USA Today Assistant Coaches Salary Database.
While Banks is sure to leave a void on the recruiting trail, Franklin is expected to move quickly in hiring the replacement for Banks. A name to keep an eye on is a former Nittany Lion and Big Ten defensive backs coach in Michael Zordich. Zordich was fired from Michigan where he coached defensive backs from 2015-2020. His knowledge of both Penn State and the Big Ten as well as recruiting the state of Michigan could make for a seamless transition for Franklin and company.
Since 2017, the Nittany Lions have now lost 12 coaches including Banks. Many of those have graduated to higher positions much like Bowen or former offensive coordinators Ricky Rahne and Joe Moorhead who left for head coaching positions. Staff turnover is far from ideal, but for Franklin the key is he's losing coaches to better positions rather than forcing them out or letting them go which was the case for Ciarrocca.
