Josh Heupel will not retain Tennessee football strength coach Kurt Schmidt

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Tennessee football strength and conditioning coach Kurt Schmidt will not be retained on Josh Heupel's staff, Knox News confirmed on Jan. 1.

Schmidt's contract was set to expire on Jan. 31. Offseason workouts begin for UT players when they return to campus in mid-January following winter break.

It's an expected move after a disappointing 2025 season but still eye-opening. Schmidt had worked with Heupel for the past nine years at three different schools.

Schmidt was Missouri's director of applied performance in 2017, when Heupel was the Tigers' offensive coordinator. Heupel got his first head coaching job at UCF in 2018, and he hired Schmidt as his director of sports performance. In 2021, he brought Schmidt with him to Tennessee.

Schmidt's official title was director of competition development. In February 2025, he got a one-year extension, but his pay remained $475,000.

Schmidt is the latest staff change under Heupel, following a 2025 season when the Vols lost all five games to FBS teams with a winning record. In December, Heupel fired defensive coordinator Tim Banks and hired Jim Knowles to replace him.

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing atknoxnews.com/subscribe.

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee football strength coach Kurt Schmidt not retained by Josh Heupel

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