De’Rail Sims, a former Cincinnati running backs coach, was hired by Tennessee to replace Jerry Mack, who just resigned to take a similar position with the Jacksonville Jaguars, according to Austin Price of On3’s Volquest.
Sims, a native of South Carolina, spent his first two seasons with the Bearcats at Louisville, where he played under current Cincinnati coach Scott Satterfield. He has previously worked as an RB coach at Carson Newman, James Madison, East Carolina, and Western Carolina.
Sims has managed his teams’ rushing attacks to finish in the top 25 of the NCAA for the last three years, with Louisville placing second in the ACC the last two years. In 2021 and 2022, the Cardinals surpassed 200 yards per game on the ground and scored 25 and 29 touchdowns, respectively. Throughout his still very short coaching tenure, Sims has led explosive ground games at each of his destinations. With the Cardinals, he helped conference rookie of the year Rahjai Harris amass more than 600 yards and
During Sims’ tenure, the team’s rushing attack, which ranked fourth in the nation in touchdowns with 108, sixth in yards with over 9,400, and 13th in yards per game at about 220, was the driving force behind the offense.
Sims transitioned from FCS to FBS after three years at James Madison, where he served as ECU’s running backs coach for three seasons.
