IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTT’SSSSSSSSSSSS MONDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And it’s a victory Monday, which is always amazing. AND IT’S A VICTORY MONDAY OVER THE ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE, WHICH IS EVEN MORE AMAZING. We’ve had just two of those since 2007. Oh, enjoy these days, Vol fans.
Anywho, it’s time to take those Tennessee Vols-related thoughts in my head, roll them up tight, pull out that lighter, and puff away. Let’s get to it…
1) Lots of places I could begin, but I’ve got to start with the defense being their usual tough selves, and their stars came up massively.
James Pearce, Jr. had the big impact game on the stat sheet that the Vols had needed from him. 2 sacks and an astounding 9 pressures, per Pro Football Focus. Pearce hadn’t been lighting it up statistically this year, but he still was quietly having a major impact coming in, leading all pass rushers in the country in pressure rate. He made a big difference on Saturday.
Jermod McCoy was huge as well. Man, where would this Tennessee defense be without him in 2024? The Oregon State transfer has been nothing but outstanding. Tennessee might not win without that catch and interception return in the first half. He allowed just 5 of 11 passes to be caught that were thrown his way for 44 yards. A big game from the sophomore corner.
2) But is there a better story than Will Brooks, the man who walked on at Tennessee in 2020?
The Birmingham native sent his home state flagship school back home with a loss with two MASSIVE plays in the game. The first was inside the first five minutes with Bama facing third and 1. The UT defense was up at the line to stop the sneak, but Jalen Milroe got free and was sent to take off for an easy touchdown. However, Brooks dove full extension and got a hand on his leg to trip him up. That saved 7 points, as Bama would later punt.
And, of course, the game sealing interception that sent Neyland Stadium into a frenzy. Brooks was the highest graded UT player at 84.1 by Pro Football Focus. And what a perfect time for a truly iconic performance.
3) Now, who didn’t have an iconic performance, at least for the first half, was Tennessee’s starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava.
It’s absolutely wild how this game turned after halftime. Nico looked like Joe Milton when he was having a bad game last year. Indecisive, off on mid-range throws, and absolutely air mailing open guys deep. And, much like last year, Tennessee’s receivers couldn’t hang onto balls that were actually put on the money.
But then everything changed after halftime. Tennessee got three huge plays from Nico on their three scoring drives. Nico broke free and ran up the middle for 27 yards inside the red zone. Later, he rolled right and uncorked one of the best college throws you’ll ever see to Dont’e Thornton for 55 yards down to the three-yard line. Lastly, he lobbed an absolute dime to Chris Brazzell II for the go ahead score from 16 yards.
Sometimes it just takes a few plays in order to change a game. You don’t have to be perfect for 4 quarters. And Nico ended up making just enough plays to help Tennessee escape with a win.
Now, if the Vols are going to beat Georgia, they’re darned sure going to have to do better offensively across 4 quarters. But on Saturday night against the Tide, it was just good enough.
4) Now, where that leaves the Vols in the playoff picture is curious heading into their bye week.
Pundits are torn on whether Tennessee is back on track for the playoff at 10-2, or if they need to beat Georgia. CBSSports.com’s Jerry Palm took that one step further, saying the Vols are the ones with work to do and Alabama is in shape to get into the playoff. Which…..is absolutely insane, but he’s entitled to his wrong opinion, certainly.
Still, yes, it’s obviously very early, and lots of football is still left to be played to sort this mess all out. What it does mean is that there’s no one dominant team in all of football anymore. The Crimson Tide are no longer a collection of cyborgs who cannot be beaten. Many teams now have a shot at making the playoff and making a run if they get there. And that’s great for college football.
Go Vols!