Everything Josh Heupel Said on Wednesday's SEC Teleconference Ahead of Alabama

No.6 Tennessee will host No.3 Alabama on Saturday in a pivotal SEC showdown on Saturday at 3:30 pm ET on CBS. The matchup between two undefeated teams will be the first in the series since 1989. On Wednesday, Josh Heupel spoke about his team and the upcoming matchup on the SEC Teleconference. Below is the full transcript.

Opening Statement

Just finished up our Wednesday practice here, and guys are in a great frame of mind, as you would expect. Everybody's excited and looking forward to the challenge on Saturday afternoon. We're playing a really good football team. Well-coached. Great personnel. So it'll be a huge test for us, really, in all three phases of the game. They do a really good job, so big test for us. Got to continue to prepare the right way here as we get on the back end of the week and really press forward to game day. That way, we're ready to play our best."

On Jaylen McCollough's Status

"No, we have not done that yet. Our administration is handling most of that. We'll have conversations with them here as they continue to gather information and make a decision here on the back end of the week."

On Cedric Tillman's Status

"Do not have anything. We'll continue to evaluate. Like I said early in the week, that'll be a decision that our medical team and Cedric make, a decision here on the back end (of the week). If he's playing, you want to make sure that he's 100% and ready to go play the way that he does. He continues to progress, so we'll make a decision here as we get closer to game day."

How the open date impacted the performance at LSU

"For us, a majority of that was development of our young, getting back to a lot of fundamentals with our vets and turned our attention to LSU really as we came off the bye weekend. So we got a couple of good days of work on the grass. We had some guys that needed to get healed up that were able to, then obviously our coaching staff spent a lot of time out on the road recruiting, too."

On fan reaction related to the Alabama Game

"I think you talk to different Tennessee fans, different generations or different people have who they think the biggest rival is. I think that's one of the unique things here. Alabama obviously is a big one for everybody. This means a lot to our fan base, and for us inside this program, obviously this week means a lot, too. We've worked to get to this point to have this type of setting here inside of Neyland Stadium, so excited about that opportunity."

On preparing for two Alabama quarterbacks, given Bryce Young's unknown status

"I think you have to prepare for both of them. You have to have a plan, even if you know who the starter is, just because you know that there's going to be some things that are different depending on if the other guy goes into the football game. For us, starting with Coach Banks, then our defensive staff and our players, understanding who's in, the type of things that you're going to see. Obviously, our calls may adjust in situations based on who the QB is, but you're going to have to prepare for both of them anyways."

On learning about the importance of the Alabama and Florida rivalry

"Alabama was the first one that got mentioned. Similar to what I was just talking about, different people have who their biggest rival is inside of our yearly schedule. This is a big game. It's a historic game, one that I grew up watching. Looking forward to the opportunity that we have this week, but for our fan base, this is certainly one that they point to. Looking forward to it. This is definitely one of the games that everybody pointed to. When you come into this job here, you have an understanding of the expectations. This is a proud fan base. Expect to win. This is certainly one, one of a few that gets circled by our fan base every year. We've tried to continue to grow and build this program. We've done that here in the early part. For us, man, preparation is going to be critical to allow us to go play our best football on Saturday, understanding that we're playing a great opponent."

On Henry To'o To'o

"Good. He's athletic. Has the ability to play sideline to sideline. I think he's continued to grow in his eye discipline and understanding of offensive and defensive structures and does a really good job. I think he sees things extremely well inside the core and is a really, really good football player."

On Alabama's running backs and Jahmyr Gibbs

"I think they do a great job of pressing combinations, delivering the offensive line to second-level blocks. I think they have a great pace as the run's developing. They're explosive with the ball in their hands. Once they hit the line of scrimmage, they're able to get to full speed extremely well. I think they finish their runs, playing with great pad level. Gibbs obviously has great elusiveness, and the ability to make you miss is a home-run hitter. For us, you don't want to let those guys get started."

What areas has Tennessee's defense improved the most from the start of the season

"Gap integrity through all three levels of our defense. Block destruction. Playing with great pad level and technique. Getting off of blocks and making plays. I think those are a couple of things that have helped us on the defensive side of the football in regard to the run game. Got to continue to do that here in this one."

How much relaxing and just playing has contributed to the success of quarterback Hendon Hooker this season:

"I think Hendon's continued to grow into the best version of him as a football player. A lot of that stems from the work that he's put in, fundamentally growing, understanding offensively what we're doing, what he sees from defenses. But he has found a way to be a great and fierce competitor and still have a lot of fun while he's doing it. For him, that's when he plays his best football."