Tennessee went on the road, started an 18-year-old freshman quarterback, scored 45 points, ran for 299 yards, picked off Tech’s Alberto Mendoza twice — including Dejuan Lane’s pick-six and the other by TELANDER climbing the ladder— and beat Georgia Tech by three touchdowns.
The message board responded by declaring the offense obsolete and so 2022, firing the offensive-line coach again, questioning the defensive coordinator, wondering whether Tim Banks or John Chavis had somehow wandered back into the booth, briefly regaining faith in the defense, losing it again, and opening an international investigation into Australian punters.
A routine 21-point road win.
The postmortem continues.
CPTThompson1028 probably explained the night best:
“I think the first drive set some unrealistic expectations. Made it look too easy and then look too bad. Felt like we would win by 100 after that”
That was the problem.
Tennessee made football look easy for three plays.
The board never recovered.
Offense: 45 Points. System Apparently Broken.
The opening drive lasted three plays and ended in the end zone.
Volunteer4life:
“Couldn’t ask for anything better than that! Great OL blocking and play calling.”
That opinion survived approximately the life cycle of a Costco sample.
Then the offensive line went straight back under the microscope.
Kwyjibo:
“I couldn’t believe when I saw some posters on this board saying we were gonna have a top 10 offensive line this year in the country.”
TheRainKing:
“We can’t move the line of scrimmage when we need to. It’s pitiful.”
VolsForever101 skipped ahead to the offseason exit interviews:
“Crabtree and Elarbee, both gone this offseason. Need to cull the weaknesses from this staff.”
By halftime Tennessee was up two touchdowns, which apparently meant the offense was sputtering.
UndeniableTruth:
“Playcalling left a lot to be desired in my opinion.”
SysVol:
“You’re stuck in 2022 and that offense no longer works.”
The offense that no longer works scored 45 points on the road with an 18-year-old quarterback.
Volmania:
“45 points on the road with an 18 year old freshman I’ll take it”
An extremist position.
Tennessee ran for 299 yards.
Glen Elarbee still has a hearing Monday morning.
Defense: Dead. Elite. Dead Again.
The Tennessee defense spent Saturday night moving between funeral homes and awards banquets.
Early diagnosis:
“This defense sucks.”
Then came the familiar coordinator séance.
Is Tim Banks still in the booth?
Did somebody accidentally bring John Chavis back?
Where are the defensive backs? Not on my 85 inch screen.
And then there was Telander.
Volgaryn:
“Telander can not set the edge.”
A little later, Telander made the interception.
JMOR17:
“TELANDERRRRR”
UT_Word:
“Hahahaha and y’all didn’t want him on the field”
And finally CampSned1997:
“very athletic play by Telander, never a doubt he has the ability to climb the ladder like that”
There had, in fact, been doubt.
Recent, documented doubt.
Then VolQuest, a popular Vols message board, poured gasoline on the fire.
Mike Wilson reported that Knowles and the staff have been deliberately turning Telander into a new weapon — moving him to the edge, teaching him the JACK role and building packages to get him on the field.
WTF?
The board had spent weeks trying to get Telander off the edge and to the bench.
Tennessee apparently spent the same period figuring out additional ways to put him on the field.
Knowles even asked Telander for his favorite play Friday. Saturday night, he called it near the goal line. Telander blew through for the sack.
This raises serious questions about the previously accepted theory that UTAD personnel monitor the message board and forward scheme guidance to the football staff.
The UTAD board monitors are not fucking listening.
There is, however, a more disturbing possibility.
They are reading everything and doing the exact opposite.
Then came the third quarter and a fresh emergency.
Volnavyman:
“Got a lead and now just gonna play soft coverage and give up yards and points. They all do it. It’s infuriating lol.”
And later:
“I don’t get the defensive philosophy in the 3rd quarter. We just handed them 7 points and confidence.”
Tim Banks. John Chavis. Third-and-Chavis.
The defense picked off Mendoza twice — Dejuan Lane took one back for six, and Jeremiah Telander had the other.
Tennessee still won by 21.
Coaching: Please Explain the Three-Touchdown Win
The penalties were ugly. No need to pretend otherwise.
RJ_Vol:
“300 yards rushing and imposing our will on the road…gets an A. Penalties are another story altogether.”
Reasonable.
The board immediately left reasonable behind.
AntiochVol08:
“Investigate the HC. This play calling is abysmal.”
And after Tennessee completed a 45–24 road win, webbvol92 offered this:
“140 yards on penalties … we were incredibly close to being a one score game. A lot to be concerned about.”
A lot to be concerned about.
Final score: Tennessee 45. Georgia Tech 24.
Heupel won by 21 on the road with a freshman quarterback and still spent part of the night being treated like a contractor explaining missing purchase-card receipts.
Special Teams: The Australian Situation
Then there was the blocked punt.
Jackson Ross got one blocked and Georgia Tech recovered it for a touchdown.
For several minutes, Tennessee’s foreign-punter program became a matter of national security.
Yes, Ross is Australian.
That was enough.
One blocked punt from the Australian. Two interceptions from Mendoza.
The board has moved on to immigration law and ICE removal procedures for both players.
Ross survived. Mendoza survived. Tennessee survived. Australia retained diplomatic recognition.
The Board Reviews the Board
By the end, the board had begun grading itself.
TrVol14:
“There’s an overreaction to every single play in a game on this board”
Correct.
That is also the business model.
Volcrush93:
“Some folks should really refrain from posting until the second half. Or at all that be better.”
Also from Volcrush93:
“Terrible loss at Ughga bugha tech.”
Tennessee won 45–24.
There were posters talking about seven-win seasons. There were posters talking about the playoff. Some appeared capable of believing both at the same time.
That is range.
Final Accounting
Tennessee went to Atlanta and won 45–24.
Faizon Brandon passed his first real road test. Tennessee ran the football. The defense picked off Mendoza twice — Dejuan Lane took one back for six, and Jeremiah Telander had the other. The Vols survived 14 penalties for 142 yards and a blocked-punt touchdown.
And the board finished exactly where it started:
Certain Tennessee was excellent.
Certain Tennessee was terrible.
Certain somebody needed to be fired.
FINAL: TENNESSEE 45, GEORGIA TECH 24.
A lot to be concerned about.
Postgame temperature: 89% Tennessee Orange — Three-touchdown wins remain subject to review.
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