KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – With Saturday’s contest against Missouri slated to be the final home game of the season, No. 5 Tennessee is focused on making it a memorable at Neyland Stadium.
The Vols will look to remain unbeaten at home this year and cap their first perfect record at Neyland Stadium since 2007 with a win on Saturday afternoon.
While the Tigers enter the game with a 4-5 record, UT knows the task will be anything but easy. Four of Missouri’s five losses have come by seven points or less, including a narrow four-point defeat to No. 1 Georgia back on Oct. 1 in a game that the Tigers led until late in the fourth quarter.
“They have good skill, good young skill,” defensive coordinator Tim Banks said of Mizzou. “Their quarterback has done a really good job. I think he’s underrated. I think he’s more athletic than what a lot of people give him credit for. He’s made some plays. He played Georgia extremely well, and they were winning in the fourth quarter.
“We know those guys are going to come in here ready to play. At the end of the day, we just have to make sure that we’re ready to play. We are worried about Tennessee and making sure they get our best version.”
Tennessee’s offense is determined to bounce back from a disappointing performance down in Athens last weekend and will have to do so against a stingy Tigers’ defense that ranks fourth in the SEC in scoring (21.4 ppg) and total defense (304.1 ypg) while ranking third in the league in yards per play allowed (4.83).
Missouri is especially adept at pressuring opposing quarterbacks and creating negative plays, leading the conference with 68.0 tackles for loss while ranking fourth in the SEC with 22.0 sacks this season.
Senior offensive lineman Jerome Carvin said that the Tigers’ defensive performance against Georgia definitely got the team’s attention.
“Yeah, we definitely watched the tape,” Carvin said. “Man, they got after them. It was a physical bunch. They played really hard, and they executed up front. Especially, when you got into third and longs, in that game they got home, so they were able to affect the quarterback.
“I’m looking forward to this game. We have to be able to run the football, get out and stay out of third and longs and when we are in third longs, we have to protect. That’s the game plan.”
The Vols have looked to their senior leaders like Carvin and quarterback Hendon Hooker as they look to return to form this Saturday.
“The seniors here right now are leading in such incredible way,” offensive coordinator Alex Golesh said. “We just got done with a Tuesday practice after our first loss and it’s constant energy and positivity. Guys like Hendon Hooker and Jerome Carvin are the reason this program – at least for us offensively – has been able to flip. They fed off of coach Heupel’s message, fed off of our message, demanded greatness through the offseason and practice, and continue to demand that our process every single day is right. Those guys have been incredible. They have remained positive and remained the same way throughout the process – very much lead by Hendon and what his approach has been. I can’t give those guys enough credit.”
On top of Senior Day, Saturday will also be UT’s annual “Salute to Service” game, as current and former members of the military will be honored throughout the afternoon. Kickoff against the Tigers is slated for noon on CBS. Limited tickets are still available at AllVols.com.
Transcripts and player quotes from Tuesday’s media availabilities can be found below.
Defensive Coordinator Tim Banks
On team’s defensive performance against Georgia and how they can improve moving forward…
“I think the first thing was the big plays. They came out, hit us on a couple of plays. When you’re playing a good team that is as talented as the team we faced, you know there’s going to be some give and some take. We thought we were in pretty good position. Guys made plays. You look at the technique, the fundamentals, look at the call, you evaluate everything to make sure you’re putting them in the best possible situation to be successful. Obviously, there are some things we want to do better. The kids owned it, coaches owned it. Overall, we thought we gave ourselves a chance once we settled down, but you can’t start that slow. That has not been our calling card.”
On Missouri…
“They have good skill, good young skill. Their quarterback has done a really good job. I think he’s underrated. I think he’s more athletic than what a lot of people give him credit for. He’s made some plays. He played Georgia extremely well, and they were winning in the fourth quarter. We know those guys are going to come in here ready to play. At the end of the day, we just have to make sure that we’re ready to play. We are worried about Tennessee and making sure they get our best version.”
On teaching moments from the Georgia game…
“When you’re on the road playing a talented team, you want to start off fast. You want to make sure that the communication is where it needs to be, alignments, all of the small details that always come back and bite you if you don’t adhere to them. I think our kids understand that. We have some resilient kids. We have a mature bunch. We looked at those things, we looked at the alignments, assignments and the communication part. We addressed it, and now we are moving on.”
On the secondary lineup with Brandon Turnage and Doneiko Slaughter at corner…
“We are still working through it. I think we are always going to try to put the guys out there that are going to give us the best opportunities to be successful on Saturdays. Those guys have been healthy the last couple of weeks. They obviously played well the first week, and to a degree this last week. Getting Christian Charles back and getting him healthy, he’ll factor in. We feel good about those two guys, but nothing is ever settled. It’s a game-by-game kind of deal back there, no different than what it is at all the positions. Number one, you have to be healthy, and obviously you have to be playing at a high level. We thought those guys did that the last couple of weeks.”
On Missouri’s offense…
“They’re very talented at the receiver spot. Even though they’re young, they have really good talent there. They have a quarterback who is a lot more athletic than people give him credit for. You look at the moxie they showed playing the University of Georgia, I thought they did a great job schematically. They put them in a lot of tough situations. We know those guys will come in here ready to play. The key is making sure we are ready to play and doing the best job we can of preparing this week to get ready for a tough Missouri team.”
On what the seniors on defense have meant to the program…
“It’s been great. For a lot of those guys, it will be their last home game. Those guys, they bought into what we were selling from Coach Heupel down to myself. We’ll be forever appreciative of the foundation that these guys have laid. I think they’re going to be extremely proud moving forward as they watch Tennessee grow and continue to ascend throughout the country, doing it through our play. It’s really because of the foundation that those guys have laid.”
On what makes a defense spy a mobile quarterback versus not spying him…
“I think just like anything, you have to do some things and kind of mix it up. I don’t think you want to do anything the whole time. These guys are too smart, the coordinators are too smart. There will be opportunities obviously where you want to spy and mirror him, but there will be some opportunities where you have to push five or six guys to try to get him on the ground. I think the reality of it is, you just have to do a great job of trying to mix up the fronts, mix up the coverages to try to keep him guessing. If he knows exactly what he’s seeing, he’s liable to put the ball down and just take off running. Nobody wants to see that, let alone me.”
On Georgia’s big plays early in the game and how they have limited them this season…
“I think number one, I think we’ve been really good against the big plays for the most part. We do a percentage each week, in terms of how many plays we play versus how many big plays we play. We’ve graded out pretty high most of the season. Going back to the Georgia game, to be quite honest with you, they made some plays. I felt like we were in a good spot coverage wise. I think we were where we needed to be for the most part. Guy just made a great contested catch on both plays, and then the other big play that we gave up, we weren’t where we needed to be. That was obviously frustrating. We know we’re playing talented teams. Just about every team in this conference that we’re seeing week in and week out is going to be talented. We just have to make more plays than we obviously give up.”
On importance of containing Missouri receivers…
“Yeah, it’s really important. Those guys are talented. I stated earlier, they’re young but they’re extremely talented, athletic. They’ve played well in a lot of big moments for those guys in their young career. It’s important to know where those guys are, particularly (Luther Burden III). He’s fast enough to tear the top off the coverage, but he’s also athletic enough when the ball is in-hand to be able to make guys miss. He’s a good young prospect.”
On if defense talks about committing a penalty to avoid giving up a big play…
“I don’t want to speak for everybody, but from my perspective, and I played defensive back—you probably can’t tell but back in the day—obviously, if you’re beat and you’re going to give up a touchdown, yeah, you’d rather grab the guy and obviously let them call the flag and give us a chance to play again. We probably talk a lot more about just having better technique, fundamentals and making sure we’re not in those situations. At the end of the day, the name of the game is to keep them out of the end zone at all costs. If you feel like you’re going to give up a score, you best do what you need to do to give us a chance to snap the ball again.”
On how closely he monitors snaps of different positions…
“We monitor all of them. We want to make sure, as I said I think the very first press conference that we had, we realized that we have one of the best offenses in the country, and they’re going to score a lot of points and we’re going to play a lot of plays. It was of the utmost importance that we rotate these guys, particularly up front. Those guys are the guys that typically get tired the quickest. Then I would move on to the linebackers as well. We put a lot on those guys’ plate, and we want to make sure those guys are fresh coming down this back stretch in the fourth quarters. We’ve really been able to, not really by design, but because of so many injuries we’ve had on the back end, we’ve really put ourselves in a position where a lot of guys have earned some trust, and we’re able to rotate those guys a little bit more too based on the experience they’ve gotten earlier in the season. We want to rotate guys as much as possible to try to keep them fresh. The more we can do it, I think it’s great obviously for us to play fast at the end of games, but it’s also great for the morale. At the end of the day, they get what they earn. If guys are working hard, if guys are playing to the standard and they give themselves the chance to win in practice, we’re going to give them a chance to play on Saturdays.”
On what Juwan Mitchell has done differently in the last couple of weeks…
“I think Juwan (Mitchell) is getting into a little bit of a rhythm. I like to think he’s starting to find his groove, so to speak. He’s healthy. He’s actually played pretty good the last couple of weeks. I think again, it’s the combination of him being healthy and the way teams have tried to attack us to a degree. It’s put him in some situations where he needed to make some plays, and he’s come through for us so far. I’m proud of the direction he’s headed. We feel like he has the chance to be a really good player in this program. I think these last couple of weeks are starting to show what he can really do.”
On working with Trevon Flowers…
“It’s been awesome. Just like all the seniors I mentioned earlier, obviously Trevon (Flowers) is a senior, he’s played a lot of football for us. He’s been a warrior. He’s been banged up to a degree, but he hasn’t missed a rep. He’s always there, he’s always trying to get better. To be quite honest with you, he’s the type of kid that you’re looking for to represent your university. He’s a good kid, he’s a good student-athlete, and he’s obviously a really good football player. He’s definitely going to be missed, I feel like he’s playing good football. More importantly, I like the kid, I like what he brings to the table from a maturity perspective. He’s definitely leaving his mark, he’s playing his best ball his senior year, and I couldn’t be more happy for him.”
Offensive Coordinator/Tight Ends Coach Alex Golesh
On the offensive struggles against Georgia having to do with Georgia’s personnel…
“What slowed us down on Saturday was us. Pre-snap penalties, not executing in critical times in the red zone. In terms of a blueprint, I think they have really good players. I think there’s a lot of teams in this league that have really good players. We’ve played really good players. They played better than us on Saturday. The environment was, at times, not handled well by us – both players and coaches. That’s on the coaches in terms of not being ready in that aspect. They lined up with 11 guys and covered our guys at times. Other times, they didn’t. We executed at times, and at times we didn’t. The key part of that was in critical situations and situational football, third down; as we got tighter in the red zone, we didn’t execute. It’s a game of execution, and we did not. They do have good athletes though.”
On the offensive seniors playing their final game in Neyland Stadium…
“The seniors here right now are leading in such incredible way. We just got done with a Tuesday practice after our first loss and it’s constant energy, constant positivity. I think they fed off of Coach Heupel in that regard. Guys like Hendon Hooker, Jerome Carvin, Cedric Tillman, those guys are the reason this program –at least for us offensively– has been able to flip. They fed off of Coach Heupel’s message, they fed off of our message, they demanded greatness through the off-season, demanded greatness through practice. I think they continue to demand that our process every single day is right. Those guys have been incredible. They have remained positive and remained the same way throughout the process, very much led by Hendon and what his approach has been. I can’t give those guys enough credit.”
On all the offensive interruptions against Georgia affecting tempo…
“I think, in a lot of ways, when there is a clock stoppage it affects momentum one way or the other in any offense. I think when it’s self-inflicted, when there are five yards that come with it, it’s really hard. Instead of 3rd & 1, now you’re playing 3rd & 6. Instead of 3rd & 6, you’re playing 3rd & 11. I think those situations are hard. It also allows them to sub in some guys where you would rather not play against them in a situation when you have to throw the football. That’s where it hurts you more than the actual clock stopping. When it’s because of an injury, injuries happen. Sometimes injuries happen a little bit more against certain teams; so be it. When it’s self-inflicted with false starts, that’s where, if you’re losing sleep, that’s where I lose sleep. If a defensive guy gets hurt, man that’s unfortunate, hopefully he’s healthy. When it’s us self-inflicting that wound, that’s the part the we own as coaches and I own myself. Now we’re putting ourselves in a bad spot because the clock is stopping, they can sub fresh bodies out there. 3rd & 1, we’ve been highly effective against this year, 3rd & 6, 3rd & 11 and 3rd & 16 become really, really hard. Especially in a game where you’re trying to catch up, it makes it really hard.”
On looking ahead to recruiting and filling gaps for next year with transfers…
“We have been having those conversations since Week 1, really since camp. We do have more than three games left, but I do know what you mean. You have to have a plan back in August of, ‘this is who we think we are going to lose.’ The COVID year kind of jacks it up a little bit, too, because you don’t really know exactly who is going to be back in terms of guys who have another year. But, the NFL Draft is in that same breath. You know right now, sitting here with at least who you are thinking will be back, where you have holes you got to fill. Those have been pinpointed since August and talked about every week. We talk about recruiting every day, but they have been talked about in-depth as a full staff several times a week, every week. You know this, it is the lifeblood of what we do, you got to have players. But we have pinpointed positions where we feel like we need an older guy, we need a younger guy with some years, can that be fixed with a high school guy that can take some time to develop? Or, no, we need immediate help there. You can look at the roster and say ‘they are really old there, they need some young help,’ or spots where we feel we have really good young players that will be able to step in and replace bodies.”
On Hendon Hooker’s performance against Georgia…
“I thought Hendon, just like he has every week, has really done a phenomenal job of doing his job. I think the quarterback will own some of the sacks, the quarterback will own some of the missed throws. Not to sound cliche about it, but it really is everybody’s job to protect the quarterback. We talk about it every week, we talked about it again on Monday. It is all of our job to protect the quarterback. The receivers got to get open, tight ends got to get open. O-line, running backs, tight ends at times have got to protect, and the scheme has to help them get open, too, so it is just as much on us. In terms of him holding onto the ball too long, I don’t believe that to be the case. Where Hendon has been exceptional is his timing, his ball placement, his reads have been impeccable throughout the year. Now, you take the environment, you take the fact that you are playing a really good football team on the road, did we handle that the best way we could in terms of, in those situations where it is third down, a lot of those are clock stoppage, are we handling it the right way? That is where our process for us has to be right, in terms of how we prepare our guys. For all of those guys, in a lot of ways, it is not an excuse it is just reality, their first time in that situation as the No. 1 team in the country. So, in terms of him holding onto the ball too long, I would say no. It is all of our job to protect him. He could have played better, we could have played better, we could have coached better. We have learned, we have moved on and, not discounting what it was, we are onto Missouri. A really, really good defense again and we have to go and continue to prepare and continue to perfect our process. I think that is what is awesome about this game: you get one shot at 60 minutes to do it. We didn’t do it. It’s not Hendon’s fault and it would be really hard to pinpoint one guy here and there. We did not execute, we jumped offside, we did not execute in the redzone, and it was not good enough. I think everybody understands that, our players understand that. How they respond is everything in terms of us continuing to build this program where it has to go. As of three days into it, they have responded at a really, really good level.”
On how Georgia has defended them compared to other defenses this season…
“I am not trying to discount the question. They have 11 guys, they can only do so many different things. If the question is, ‘did they out-scheme us and did we have no idea what was going on?’ Absolutely not. They had a really good scheme, they played really well. We have a really good scheme, we did not play well. Again, schematically, we were sound. We were behind the chains because of the pre-snap penalties the entire night. So, blueprint, yes, the blueprint for those guys, really good players, really good coaches. Awesome. We have really good players, really good coaches. On that day, in that 60 minutes, they were better than us. We screwed up a bunch with the pre-snap penalties.”
On Cedric Tillman’s performance since returning from injury…
“I think Cedric has done a really good job, we were really careful bringing him back two weeks ago. He played the entire game against Georgia. Ramel Keyton spelled him there a little bit. I think he has done a really good job. He looks like his old self, maybe fresh legs a little bit, in some ways. He has continued to press to improve every single day. Really, really good to have him. You saw him on Saturday, he made some plays that were hard to make. The guy that was covering him is as good as one that we have seen all year, a lot of credit to that kid. I thought Ced won his share of battles in that one, I think he is going to continue to win his share of battles, I think he has knocked the rust off. Man, it’s really good to have him. I really think with him and Bru McCoy and Ramel being able to rotate and Squirrel White. I think we are continuing to build depth there. You hope to continue to be able to play more guys, but really proud of Ced.”
Senior OL Jerome Carvin
On learning from Missouri’s defensive performance against Georgia earlier this season…
“Yeah, we definitely watched the tape. Man, they got after them. It was a physical bunch. They played really hard, and they executed up front. Especially, when you got into third and longs, in that game they got home, so they were able to affect the quarterback. I’m looking forward to this game. We have to be able to run the football, get out and stay out of third and longs and when we are in third longs, we have to protect. That’s the game plan.”
On his favorite SEC home and road wins and off field moments as a Vol …
“Favorite road moment, I would say 2018 Auburn. That was my favorite road moment here. First SEC win, I think because the year before we didn’t win any SEC games, so that was my favorite road moment. Favorite home moment would probably be Alabama this year. Beating them for the first time, being able to smoke a cigar, that was special. It was special for our fan base, special for all of Vol Nation field, so love that for them. Favorite off the field moment as a Vol, that’s tough. I would say probably just hanging with the guys, hanging with my teammates. Going to the basketball games, supporting all the other sports here. Just going to the games and showing support would probably be one of my favorite.”
On feeling the belief that Josh Heupel has in the players coming off of the loss…
“Oh no doubt. He has never lost any belief in us at all. He has high expectations for us, and he loves us, and we love him and we’re going a play so hard for him. It definitely hasn’t wavered at all from him. He’s definitely let us know that, his staff (has) as well. We’re not shying away from anything so, I’m just excited to play the rest of these games, especially looking forward to Missouri.”
Senior DB Trevon Flowers
On takeaways from Georgia game for him to correct…
“Just communicating, everybody being on the same page. The details that we’ve been focused on all season – no matter what the outside noise is saying, no matter what’s going on outside of the building here – we got to be able to stay focused, stay locked in on the assignment ahead of us. Don’t get too emotional, whatever the case may be. Just kind of staying locked in, whether the breaks are going our way, going against our way, we got to be able to reset and keep pushing.”
On Tennessee’s impressive performances in noon games…
“Maybe how we go about our everyday routine. We’re up early, practice early, getting in, that’s kind of how our body works. We’re just ready to go by 12 o’clock, just like a practice day, we’re ready to go. 12 o’clock, our practicing time is pretty much over. By that time, we’re warmed up, we’ve had a good meal, our brains are going, body’s right, that’s just what our body is used to. That’s probably the reason.”
On how they go about business without thinking about playoff positioning…
“We just got to stay focused. Like I said, the outside noise, we can’t really let it get in our locker room, we can’t really let the disturbances affect how we practice or how we play, whether we were 3-7 or 8-1, no matter what we’ve got to come in every day ready to work, ready to go and give our best shot on Saturdays. Whatever happens, happens. All we can control is what we can control.”
-UT Athletics
