UT Vols football: Pruitt's plans for offense, defense echo Alabama's style

Jeremy Pruitt served on Alabama's coaching staff two separate times for a total of seven years.

The offensive and defensive philosophies he laid out Thursday during his introductory press conference as Tennessee's football coach had a Crimson Tide ring to them.

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"The first thing offensively, I feel like we've got to create balance," he said. "We want to be able to run the football when we want to run it. It starts with dominating the line of scrimmage. It's no secret. If you want to be successful in this league, you've got to dominate up front. That's mental and physical toughness.

"We want to create explosive plays in the passing game. That starts with being able to run the football."

Pruitt, who has been Alabama's defensive coordinator this season, favors an aggressive defense that dictates terms to the opposing offense.

"We're not going to sit back on our heels, alright," he said. "We're not going to play off wide receivers. We're going to walk up to the line of scrimmage and we're going to challenge and every inch that the other team gets is going to be challenged."