Jeremy Pruitt’s coaching staff at Tennessee continues to grow, as the Vols’ new head coach reportedly made yet another hire on Saturday.
According to a report from 247Sports, Pruitt has hired John Lilly as the executive assistant to the head coach, which is an off-field position. Lilly did not coach anywhere in 2017, but he has an extensive history in big time college athletics.
Lilly served as tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator for Florida State from 1998-2007. He was then hired on by Georgia to coach tight ends for the Bulldogs in 2008 and stayed there till 2015. He coached under Bobby Bowden at Florida State and Mark Richt at Georgia.
Pruitt coached with Lilly at Georgia for the two seasons he was their defensive coordinator in 2014 and 2015, and Lilly went on to coach with current Tennessee running backs coach Chris Weinke in the NFL when he served as an assistant with the Los Angeles Rams for a season.
Lilly was tasked with calling offensive plays for Georgia twice during his stint with the Bulldogs. He called plays in two bowl games for Georgia, and the Bulldogs won both, defeating Louisville 37-14 in the Belk Bowl after the 2014 season and beating Penn State 24-17 in the Taxslayer Bowl after the 2015 season.
Much like most of Pruitt’s staff, Lilly is known for his elite recruiting. According to 247Sports, he has been responsible for bringing in four five-star players and 14 four-star players in his coaching career. Myron Rolle, Terry Godwin, Jordan Jenkins, Roquan Smith, and Jeb Blazevich are just some of the prospects Lilly has been responsible for landing.
Lilly joins an off-field staff comprised of two former Vols (Montario Hardesty and Kevin Simon), former JUCO Coach of the Year Joe Osevet, former Alabama assistant Carter Blount, and former Florida State assistant Bert Biffani.
