By Jack Glennon
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – It becomes more apparent by the week that the Tennessee Volunteers need to find a new offensive identity.
Their no-huddle offense is costing them games, but not for the reason you may think.
The high-paced, pass-happy offense has thrust the Vols’ defense onto the field for a majority of the game in each of their eight games against FBS opponents. And, yes, in case you were wondering, that does include their game against Alabama-Birmingham.
After the game, Head Coach Josh Heupel was none too pleased when asked about the Volunteers’ time of possession struggles.
“Well, it was 30-29 [minutes] tonight,” Heupel said.
Though Heupel was not overly eager to talk about his team’s struggles with controlling the football, the issue simply cannot be left unresolved.
Tennessee’s defense was notably exhausted towards the end of the game, and has been all season.
They yielded 137 yards on the ground in the second half alone, with Tennessee totalling 19.
They also allowed Oklahoma’s offense, which looked stagnant at best throughout the first half, to sustain drives en route to 17 points.
Tennessee’s senior quarterback, Joey Aguilar, was supportive of the effort from the Tennessee defense.
“Our defense did their job tonight,” Aguilar said. “[the offense] didn’t.”
Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. This, unfortunately, can summarize SEC play for the Volunteers in recent years.
Oklahoma’s 33-27 Saturday victory over the Volunteers marked Tennessee’s fifth straight loss to a ranked opponent, and their third in the last six weeks.
Unfortunately for the Volunteers, even if they were to win their three remaining games, clinching a second consecutive playoff berth would be extremely unlikely. No SEC team with three losses made the playoffs a season ago.
Despite South Carolina’s late-season surge in 2024, their 9-3 record ultimately kept them from a chance to compete for a national championship.
And, needless to say, a year later, the momentum from South Carolina’s late 2024 burst has not carried over into this season.
I fear a similar trend may quickly become apparent for Tennessee.
I say this mainly because Tennessee’s main issues stem from repeated self-inflicted wounds. Aguilar turned the ball over three times tonight and voiced his frustration after the game.
“I should have put my team in a better position,” Aguilar admitted. “Our defense forced turnovers, and we didn’t do enough with those.”
Unfortunately for Tennessee, the opposite was true for Oklahoma. They took IMMEDIATE advantage of the Vols’ mishaps, even bringing an Aguilar fumble to the endzone for a 71-yard defensive touchdown.
It marked Oklahoma’s longest ever scoop-and-score, a record long maintained by now Denver Broncos star linebacker Nik Bonitto.
Yes, the Tennessee offense’s mishaps allowed Oklahoma to break a record previously held by one of the NFL’s premier talents.
With Aguilar leaving, the Volunteers will have LARGE questions surrounding their offense next season. Heupel will no doubt be able to recruit talent from the transfer portal, but how that talent will translate over to Tennessee’s system remains to be seen.
It remains to be seen how the Volunteers can turn this season around, but even if they do, they will have a hard time finding a place for themselves in a packed playoff picture.
And, unfortunately, this does beg the question: Was Tennessee a better team last season with Nico Iamaleava at the helm?
I’ll let you decide.