Defensive front seven dominated
Max Johnson was only sacked twice because of how good he was at getting rid of the ball, but he was under pressure all night. Tennessee Football held A&M to under two yards a carry and just over 50 yards on the ground. The pressure resulted in that final interception Johnson threw to Gabe Jeudy-Lally to help the Vols secure this win.
Passing game has major issues
It’s mostly Joe Milton III. He missed on far too many easy throws throughout the game and threw an interception where he couldn’t make a basic read over the middle. However, when he did have on target passes, he didn’t get help from his receivers. Ramel Keyton had another really bad drop on a potential touchdown. Texas A&M has a bad secondary, and Milton was, so this is a huge concern.
Punt game made difference for Tennessee Football
We’re talking about punting and returning. Jackson Ross pinned two punts inside the 20, one on the half-yard line. Meanwhile, Dee Williams returned a punt for a Tennessee Football touchdown to put the Vols up 14-10 at the time in the third quarter. It was their first lead of the game. This aspect of the game is a throwback for UT history and is becoming a weapon for Josh Heupel.
Penalties were costly.
Both teams probably feel like they left way too may points on the board. Texas A&M had 11 penalties for 90 yards, and the Vols had 12 penalties for 115 yards. From UT’s side, a series of mistakes by Ollie Lane, including two holding penalties, killed one drive inside A&M territory. Then there was a facemask by Javontez Spraggins that turned what looked like a touchdown drive into a field goal.
Run game proved itself
A huge question entering this game was whether or not the Tennessee Football run game would be able to handle better defensive lines with Cooper Mays out. The Vols certainly had help with Edgerrin Cooper getting hurt early, but they ran it for over 230 yards. Jaylen Wright had 136 yards, and Milton showed another side to his game with 34 yards.
