Tennessee and Jeremy Pruitt officially are in the market for a new offensive coordinator.

Western Kentucky on Tuesday officially announced the hire of Tyson Helton, who spent one season with the Vols, as its new head coach after the two sides finalized a deal.

Helton previously spent two seasons with the Hilltoppers as the offensive coordinator under Jeff Brohm in 2014 and 2015, when Western Kentucky finished sixth and third nationally in scoring in those two seasons and won 12 games and the Conference USA championship in 2015.

After his first stint at Western Kentucky, Helton spent two seasons with brother Clay Helton as the passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach at USC, where he coached quarterback Sam Darnold, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft and current rookie starter for the New York Jets, before Pruitt tabbed him to his initial staff in Knoxville.

“Congratulations to Tyson Helton on being named the head coach at Western Kentucky," Pruitt said in a statement. "I’m grateful to Tyson for the hard work he put in this season and his help in setting the foundation for future success at the University of Tennessee. Tyson is an outstanding coach. I wish him the best and I expect he will do a great job at WKU.”

GoVols247 first reported on Monday that Helton was expected to be hired at Western Kentucky. The Hilltoppers on Sunday decided to fire Mike Sanford fresh off a 2-10 season in his second year, which opened the door for Helton to land a job at a program with which he's familiar, having worked in Bowling Green and formed a relationship with athletic director Todd Stewart. Helton, sources indicated to GoVols247, was unhappy throughout the season at Tennessee.

"When determining our next head football coach, there were many qualities we felt this person must have," Stewart said in a release. "Certainly they needed to have an excellent football mind, but also be a tremendous person who was respected inside and outside of the locker room. We found that person in Tyson Helton. His background as an innovative offensive mind and a great motivator of his players fit our mission to find the next great leader for our football program. We are thrilled to bring Tyson and his wonderful family back to WKU."

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Helton was nearing the end of the first year of a three-year deal with a base salary of $1.2 million annually, and his contract stipulates he or the program hiring him would owe Tennessee 33 percent of his remaining salary — roughly a little more than $850,000 — in buyout money for leaving before the end of February 2019.

Pruitt and Helton, who previously coached at Cincinnati, UAB, Memphis and Hawaii, hadn't worked together before this season, but their relationship goes back more than a decade.

Tennessee surpassed the 24-point mark in just two games this season and and scored 17 points or less five times, including the season-ending loss to Vanderbilt in Nashville.

"I am very excited for Tyson Helton and his opportunity to become the head coach at WKU," Tennessee athletic director Phillip Fulmer said in a statement. "Tyson is very well prepared to make this transition and has a great pedigree. His experience will serve him well, and he'll do an outstanding job. Tyson has a great demeanor and a way with people, and his integrity is beyond reproach.

"His work ethic and people skills are tremendous. As a head coach, you have to be comfortable in any kind of situation, whether it be in recruiting or with donors selling the program, and I think he will do a great job in those areas."