Josh Heupel is the Tennessee football savior that no one saw coming | Estes

He could have strolled into the press room Saturday night like Groucho Marx, still chomping on that cigar, lifting eyebrows, tossing wisecracks.

Not that Josh Heupel would ever do any of that, of course.

“Sorry I’m a little bit late,” he started, cracking a smile for a second or two before reverting back to deadpan. That’s about as light-hearted as it got in Heupel's postgame press conference after beating Alabama.

In the thick of one of the most unforgettable celebrations ever for Tennessee football – following a game that validated Heupel as one of football’s elite head coaches – he looked about as excited as if he’d found a sale for orange ties.

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Oh sure, he was prompted to acknowledge the obvious, to admit things like, yes, it was “an unbelievable scene” and “a great, great night.”

But his general vibe was as if beating Alabama and Nick Saban was no big deal. Heupel acted like he’d been there before and planned to be again: “This journey is just beginning.”

You believe him, too

Why wouldn’t you believe Heupel? Just look at what he has accomplished in a season and a half in Knoxville. It’s incredible, this Big Orange fantasy that no one could have projected, short of noticing a lamp in his back pocket that he’d use to summon the genie to Rocky Top.

Heupel hasn’t just done the best coaching job in the country this season.

He’s far down a path to what might be the best program turnaround in recent memory. That's where Tennessee was when he found it less than two years ago. That’s also how difficult it has become to crack the exclusive club of top teams in the top-heavy college football world.

Who’d have ever expected it from Heupel in Year 2? I know I sure didn’t.

When newly named athletics director Danny White brought Heupel with him from UCF, it was generally perceived – and I agreed at the time – as underwhelming. As if Tennessee had settled. As if White’s so-called national search was merely a series of rejections until he just ended up having to convince his buddy to take on a challenge that had scared off bigger names.

There was nothing in Heupel’s background to suggest he had this level of coaching chops. He hadn’t set the world on fire at UCF. Heupel didn’t even win the introductory press conference at Tennessee, because (see above) that's not what he does.

He is what can happen when a big-time player – long accustomed to fame and keeping the media and public at bay – becomes a big-time coach. And we forget now, but Heupel was a big-time player, more than most coaches. He finished second – barely – for the 2000 Heisman Trophy while leading Oklahoma to the national title.

Heupel actually has been there before. That's not an act.

And what he's doing with Tennessee, it’s not a fluke or a gimmick. If that wasn't widely understood before Saturday, I believe it is now.

Tackling the GOAT

I didn’t just think. I knew, deep down, that Alabama would win. And fairly easily, too. I told people that.

Nothing to do with Tennessee, mind you. It was just that Saturday’s setup was so perfect for Alabama. We’d seen it so many times with Saban. The occasional opponent might be able to sneak up on his Crimson Tide (see Lane Kiffin’s Vols in 2009), but you don’t want to give them a reason to be up for a game.

In rare instances in which the Crimson Tide is doubted and given a point to prove, you'd best believe they’re about to go prove it. Always do. Last year’s SEC title game against Georgia was the most recent example.

Tennessee had similarly earned the right to get Alabama’s best effort.

Turns out, the Vols outplayed them anyway.

The most talented team didn’t win, but the better-coached, better-prepared team did. Alabama was flagged for 17 penalties. Its special teams were as woeful as its defense. Tennessee’s tempo wasn’t the reason, either. It was because the Crimson Tide’s secondary often looked like it had no idea how to cover the Vols receivers – especially Jalin Hyatt – or get enough pressure on Hendon Hooker behind offensive linemen that were Saturday’s unsung heroes.

Saban is a defensive coach. Heupel made him appear overmatched. The Vols’ offense was miles ahead all game, and Heupel knew it. He never eased up, coaching without a trace of caution or fear.

He didn’t settle for overtime late. He threw it into the end zone on fourth-and-6 late in the first half. The pass wasn’t completed, but it was open. Ramel Keyton was open in the third quarter, too, when he just couldn’t corral a deep throw that looked like a sure touchdown.

Tennessee scored 52 on Saban’s Alabama, and it should have scored more.

Were it not for a magnificent performance by Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, this game wouldn’t have been close.

And finally, an admission

Pay attention, Georgia, and whoever else. Bryce Young isn’t on your sideline, too.

Finding a way to surpass Alabama on a special night in Neyland Stadium does not guarantee anything in Athens' Sanford Stadium in a few weeks. Tennessee has flaws. Its defense, after all, still isn’t very good. But there’s a chance that Heupel’s offense can make up for that with the constant pressure it inflicts on defenses.

The manner in which the Vols beat the Crimson Tide was eye-opening in a way that Tennessee football hasn’t been in a very long time.

Perhaps I needed to see that to believe it was real, but I saw it. And it is real.

A lot of people were wrong about Josh Heupel at Tennessee.

I used to be one of them.

Reach Tennessean sports columnist Gentry Estes at gestes@tennessean.com and on Twitter @Gentry_Estes.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Josh Heupel is the Tennessee football savior that no one saw coming