KNOXVILLE - Tennessee's search for a new defensive coordinator has entered the weekend, but it may not last much longer the if the Volunteers are able to reach a deal with their top target.
A program source confirmed multiple reports that Penn State defensive coordinator Bob Shoop was in Knoxville on Friday meeting with Tennessee head coach Butch Jones and other members of the coaching staff as the Vols look for a replacement for John Jancek.
As of Friday night no deal had been reached, but talks between Tennessee and Shoop are expected to continue into today.
Hiring Shoop would come with a hefty price tag, but it would also be a clear sign of Tennessee's intent. Shoop's buyout at Penn State is believed to be in the $800,000 range, and he likely would require a seven-figure salary.
The highest-paid coach on Tennessee's staff in 2015 was Jancek at $515,000, but the school plans to increase the salary pool with raises for the assistant coaches this offseason.
Tennessee likely would have to give Shoop a three-year contract, something the Vols haven't done in recent years under athletic director Dave Hart. Assistant coaches have worked with two-year deals that have been rolled over after each season.
Last month Forbes magazine ranked Tennessee as the third most valuable college football program in the country behind only Texas and Notre Dame, and the athletic department is in a much more stable position financially than it was when Hart was hired.
Shoop is an intriguing candidate because of his record of success as a coordinator and his ties to Middle Tennesssee, which will continue to be an emphasis in recruiting for Tennessee. In his three seasons at Vanderbilt, Shoop's defenses finished 29th, 15th and 44th nationally in scoring defense. PSU's Nittany Lions ranked second in yards allowed and seventh in points allowed - just 18.6 per game - in 2014 and finished 26th this season.
Shoop's last five units finished in the top 20 in total defense.
His success prompted LSU to pursue him last offseason to replace John Chavis after the former Tennessee defensive coordinator left for Texas A&M, and Shoop's decision to stay came with a new three-year deal that bumped his salary into the $1 million range, making him one of the nation's highest-paid coordinators in 2015.
Prior to joining James Franklin at Vanderbilt in 2011, Shoop was the defensive coordinator at William & Mary (2007-10), coached defensive backs at Massachusetts (2006) and spent three seasons as the head coach at Columbia (2003-05).
Among his other coaching stops were Boston College, Army, Villanova, Virginia, Northeastern and Yale, his alma mater.
If Tennessee cannot land Shoop, other potential candidates include former Michigan head coach Brady Hoke and North Carolina defensive coordinator Gene Chizik. Hoke, who took this season off from coaching after his ouster in Ann Arbor, has multiple ties to Jones and Tennessee's coaching staff, and he visited the Vols during preseason practice in August.
Chizik has interest in the position, but it's unclear if that is a direction the Vols would go. The former Auburn coach turned around the Tar Heels' defense this season and has ties to Willie Martinez and Tommy Thigpen, Tennessee's defensive backs and linebackers coaches.
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com