Jeremy Pruitt recently bragged that Tennessee managed to keep Craig Fitzgerald from leaving the program this offseason for a position with another SEC program, this comment came after Alabama lost Scott Cochran to Georgia, but apparently the allure of leaving for an NFL job was too much for the Volunteer strength coach.

Here’s what Pruitt had to say about the job Fitzgerald has done following the first practice of Tennessee’s spring camp.

“I can’t say enough about Craig and his guys and what they have done over the last three years. Our guys continue to get bigger, stronger, develop discipline and a lot of mental toughness,” Pruitt noted. “In the offseason, Craig is a guy that is in high demand. That is no secret. There have been several jobs that have been open across our league and Craig was the first guy that they called. He decided to stay here. He is in demand because he is good at what he does.”

While Tennessee managed to keep Fitzgerald away from Alabama, the Vols could not do the same when the NFL came calling according to a report from Patrick Brown of GoVols247, Fitzgerald is expected to leave Tennessee for the New York Giants. Interestingly enough, the Giants also hired former Tennessee inside linebackers coach Kevin Sherrer this offseason.

Fitzgerald has NFL experience as Pruitt hired the strength coach from the Houston Texans after landing the head coaching position on Rocky Top. Fitzgerald was among the highest-paid strength coaches in the nation at Tennessee.

Now for the first time in his tenure in Knoxville, Pruitt will be looking for a new head strength coach to lead his Tennessee program.