Where Vols Can Build Following Vandy Victory
Tennessee came into Nashville on Saturday absolutely desperate for a victory. It didn’t matter that the opponent was a winless Vanderbilt team that was badly undermanned. It didn’t matter that the Vols were heavy favorites. It didn’t matter that Vanderbilt could potentially be facing an all-time low. The Vols have had precious little go right in their season since they began the second half in Athens, Georgia months ago. The Vols needed a victory. It didn’t matter who or how, they just had to find a way to get back into the win column. Tennessee managed to do just that, leaving Nashville victorious by a score of 42-17 over the Commodores. It is difficult to say just how much the Vols can take from this victory, as Vanderbilt was down a multitude of players, but there are some points worth discussing.
The Vols find themselves back in the win column, and for Tennessee, the talk again circles around the quarterback position. Harrison Bailey was given the nod to start, and played about as well as could be asked. Bailey started the game 7-7 for 62 yards, including a wide open touchdown off a nice play fake to Princeton Fant. The pass was Fant’s first score as a Volunteer, and was Tennessee finding some production from the tight end position. Bailey started the game with some swing passes behind the line for minimal gains, but then began pushing the ball down the field successfully. It was after this strong start that a bizarre play led to an even more bizarre decision.
In the Vanderbilt red zone, Bailey dropped to throw, looking for, it appears on film, a crossing Jalin Hyatt. For some reason with a an additional offensive lineman on the field, Jim Chaney designed a play where Tennessee’s third string tight end, Jacob Warren, was blocking Vanderbilt’s best pass rusher one-on-one. Bailey’s arm was hit as he released the ball as Warren was beaten badly. The ball proceeded to go forward and spiral, falling near a receiver’s feet. The officials, however, did not blow the play dead, and called the play a fumble recovered by the Commodores. The play was confirmed after review, despite looking all the world like a forward pass. Perhaps the greater shock would come the next drive, when Pruitt pulled Bailey in favor of JT Shrout, presumably because the freshman had turned the football over. Pruitt stated at halftime he felt Bailey held on to the ball a bit too long there, and after the game stated that the decision was based on feel. Earlier this season, Pruitt stated that he had not wanted to play Bailey for fear of hurting his confidence, yet pulled him after a 7-7 start with a touchdown over a play that first had a terrible design, second saw Warren badly beaten, and third saw the officials blow a call twice to be ruled a fumble. Whether Pruitt meant to play both of his quarterbacks or not, his timing and logic in the decision to pull Bailey is just the latest in his series of abysmal and baffling decisions while entirely mismanaging his quarterback room.
For Shrout’s part he came in and, while the offense did look less efficient than it had with Bailey, found success. He had a deep throw down the sideline to Velus Jones that turned into a touchdown. Jones made a fantastic adjustment to a ball thrown behind him, secured the catch, worked the tight rope, and managed to dive and contort himself into the endzone. Later, Shrout drilled a pass across the middle to freshman Jalin Hyatt. It was a simple post, but Shrout threw the ball on time and on target, driving the ball into Hyatt in stride. The young speedster then showed his wheels, leaving the Vanderbilt defense in the dust on his way to the endzone. While Shrout had some success on chunk plays, the offense seemed to stall out with a few drives, and a bad interception thrown off the back foot and into tight coverage, saw Shrout pulled in favor of Bailey who finished the game.
Bailey continued to lead the offense, which was productive while he was in, though the Vols were conservative and trying to run out the clock late in the game. Perhaps the highlight of the game offensively came when Bailey found Jones on the right hash. Jones bounced off a tackle and worked toward the sideline. The senior turned on the jets and took the pass 74 yards to the endzone. Bailey ended the game 14-18 for 207 yards and 2 scores, while Shrout’s line for the day was 6-13 for 90 yards, 2 touchdowns, and an interception. Brian Maurer had a single run of 22 yards, and thanks to a Paxton Brooks fake punt completion, the Vols had their only 300 yard passing game of the season. Vanderbilt or not, for a team that has struggled so much at the quarterback position, that is a positive step.
Two of the players that reaped the rewards of better quarterback play and downfield passing were Jones and Hyatt. Velus Jones ended the day with 125 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while Jalin Hyatt racked up 81 yards and a touchdown catch. Jones and Hyatt are two players that the Vols have struggled to utilize properly this season because of poor decisions by the coaches regarding quarterbacks, quarterback play, offensive design, and a frankly puzzling rotation at receiver. The more Bailey and Shrout have played, the more Jones has shown what he is capable of. While expectations might be tempered considering the state of the Vanderbilt defense, he has felt like a player capable of this type of performance if used more. Hyatt has made his presence known through the season as a big play threat, but with Bailey and Shrout pushing the ball downfield and using the middle of the field, his production has picked up. Jones has the option to return for a sixth year of eligibility, and the Vols would have to be excited to return these two speedy receivers to lead their group next season.
Defensively, the Vols managed something they have struggled to do all season long. They generated pressure on the quarterback. They still gave up yards and points to freshman quarterback Ken Seals, but they also kept him under duress for most of the game. The Tennessee pass rush has been about as bad as the Tennessee passing game this season, so regardless of who the opponent is, it was good to see Tennessee finally have some success there. The pressure kept Seals from getting comfortable in the pocket and forced him into mistakes, none of which were bigger than Bryce Thompson’s spectacular interception. Thompson managed to spear the ball out of the air one handed, then hit the gas to cash in his first career interception return for a score. The pick six seemed to be a back breaker for the Commodores. The pressure and hits seemed to begin to wear on Seals as the Vols were able to enjoy the momentum of a pick six for a change this season. Thin or not, Tennessee did things they have struggled to do all season on defense against the Commodores. Success breeds success, and hopefully the Volunteer defense can build on a good outing in the season finale.
Overlooked was that the Tennessee running game was again strong, led by Eric Gray on far less carries than typical. Gray’s efforts were supplemented by a strong day from Ty Chandler, as well as the true freshman duo of Jabari Small and Dee Beckwith. Still, this game came down to seeing Tennessee do things they haven’t done much this season, namely, throw the ball well, rush the passer well, and win. While it appeared Bailey turned in the best performance by far and should be the clear choice going into Texas A&M, Jeremy Pruitt has proved repeatedly this season he can make easy quarterback decisions exceedingly difficult. Still, the Vols were productive with the freshman on the field, despite Pruitt’s feel-based and logic-free decision of pulling him. If Tennessee can find consistent play of this caliber from Bailey, especially utilizing Jones and Hyatt, downfield, the Vols have some hope for the future. If they can manage to pair that with a consistent pass rush next week against the Aggies, the Vols could have an upset in mind. The degree of difficulty increases significantly against Texas A&M, but if Tennessee can build on and carry over success, they could shake up the national stage. That, and cool the flames roaring under Jeremy Pruitt’s seat, as a victory against a winless Vanderbilt team does little to cool them, especially considering it saw yet another bungled decision around the quarterback position.
