The biggest Tennessee coaching news on Tuesday centered on baseball’s Tony Vitello, who has agreed to a contract extension. Vitello’s new deal wasn’t the only news, however. There was much more.
UT athletic director Danny White announced that nine coaches in all have finalized extensions. The others involved were Rick Barnes (men’s basketball), Kellie Harper (women’s basketball), Chris Woodruff (men’s tennis), Alison Ojeda (women’s tennis), Lisa Glenn (rowing), Matt Kredich (swimming), Karen Weekly (softball) and Brennan Webb (men’s golf).
Tennessee’s spring sports alone combined for a program-best 470.5 points in the 28-year history of the Learfield IMG College Directors’ Cup.
“I inherited a very impressive roster of head coaches when I arrived at Tennessee back in January,” White said in a university release.
“That’s a credit to those who came before me. Extending contracts for successful coaches is one indicator of a healthy athletics program, and we plan on continuing to be aggressive with extensions and rewarding success moving forward.”
Vitello’s new deal runs through the 2026 season. Six other extensions run through June of 2026. Glenn’s contract now runs through June of 2024. Weekly’s extension goes through softball’s 2025 season.
Vitello’s annual salary was more than doubled to $1.5 million per year. His future had drawn the most interest from UT’s fan base. His name had bobbed up in connection with head coaching openings at SEC rivals Texas A&M and LSU as he guided the Vols to the College World Series for the first time since 2005.
Along with upgrading Vitello’s deal, Tennessee likely will boost pay for baseball’s support staff and commit to upgrades to Lindsey Nelson Stadium. Those improvements have been high priorities for Vitello.
Another sign of UT baseball’s robust health came on Monday when five Vols – Chad Dallas, Liam Spence, Max Ferguson, Connor Pavolony and Jake Rucker – comprised the most Tennessee players chosen in the first 10 rounds of Major League Baseball’s amateur draft in program history.
By all measures, Vitello has earned his pay raise and the accompanying acclaim. Tuesday’s announcement also rewarded some lesser-known UT coaches who also deserve their share of attention.
Kredich, for instance, has led a combined men’s and women’s swimming and diving program for a decade.
In 2020, he coached the Lady Vols to their first SEC championship. The Lady Vols have finished in the top 10 at the NCAA Championships three times. Their top finish was seventh in 2018.
The men’s team, meanwhile, has put together a streak of four consecutive top-20 finishes at the NCAA meet. The Vols were 11th in 2018 and 2019.
Woodruff, an NCAA singles champion as a Tennessee player, has been on UT’s coaching staff for 19 years. In his fourth season as head coach, the Vols reached the semifinals of the NCAA Championships. Adam Walton and Pat Harper won a doubles championship.
Glenn is UT’s longest tenured coach. In her 23rd year, the Lady Vols reached the NCAA Championships for the ninth time.