Eric Berry, one of the best defensive players in Tennessee football history, was in attendance for the Vols matchup with Texas A&M. Rightfully so, the Tennessee defense shined in the win.
In the 68 games that Josh Heupel has been a head coach, he has not won a game with under 30 points. He did just that on Saturday in Neyland Stadium when he defeated Texas A&M 20-13.
Following the win, Heupel commended his defense and Berry.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve been in one of these,” Heupel said. “And I’m good with it. I like coming out on the right side of it. Obviously, offensively, want to be more efficient when we can be, but I’ve said it from when I got here, the expectation, the standard is to play elite defense here. Not just good defense. This is the home of Eric Berry, Al Wilson, Reggie White. The standard is to be elite and when I got here, we were devastated on the other side of the defense side of the football.”
Texas A&M scored a touchdown on its first drive of the game, but that was the most success the Aggies found all night. The Vols gave up 277 yards.
Just 54 of those yards came on the ground — the lowest total for Texas A&M since it faces LSU in 2021.
“I think when you make a team one-dimensional it’s hard for them to win a football game,” defensive back Gabe Jeudy-Lally said. “We just go out there and we want to dominate in all phases—run, pass, whatever it is—but when you get the ability to stop the run, it makes play-calling a whole lot easier”
Texas A&M quarterback Max Johnson spent much of the night under duress. Tennessee only got home for two sacks, but Johnson was clearly hurting by night’s end. The Vols added five tackles for loss and 11 quarterback hurries.
Johnson finished the night just 16-of-34 through the air for 229 yards. He ran for the Aggies only touchdown of the night.
“Speaking for the S-line specifically, we go into every game thinking we can dominate every single game,
so I think it’s always an us thing,” defensive lineman Tyler Baron said. “It’s always been us and forever will be us.”
Kamal Hadden and Gabe Jeudy-Lally both grabbed interceptions on a night where the defense stole the show.
The offensive questions still persist after Saturday. Several more may even come about after the performance from Joe Milton III. The defense, however, answered a lot of questions.
The Vols head to Tuscaloosa next weekend with a struggling offense and a dominant defense. The matchup is similar to that of the Crimson Tide — a team with a similar predicament.
“Our defense wants to play at an elite level, and they want to be known for being extremely physical,” Heupel said. “That defense wants to be known for changing the way the game is played, absolutely.”
