4. Rush defense had its worst game all year
As the offense has struggled, the strength of Tennessee Football has far and away been its rush defense. The Vols have arguably the best defensive line in the nation and probably in the SEC. It’s certainly the deepest in the nation and in school history. They can go 12-deep, which gives them huge advantages as games go well into the fourth quarter.
Meanwhile, the linebacker play has been solid for the most part, even after Keenan Pili went down with a season-ending injury. Jeremiah Telander has stepped up, and Arion Carter is a rising star. Both players deserve an immense amount of credit for how much they have improved this unit over where it was the previous three years.
However, both had their issues in this game. The linebackers were consistently out of position, which allowed for the Kentucky rushing attack to step up, as they gained 168 yards on the ground. It didn’t help that the defensive line, a hallmark of the team, didn’t play with its hair on fire early, so Kentucky was able to generate lots more plays than usual.
In the end, the defensive line was able to step up when needed, as Joshua Josephs had a strip-sack while James Pearce Jr. and Omari Thomas each had sacks. Still, lack of consistency caused more problems for this team than it should have had against such a bad offense.
Takeaway #3: Passing attack
