TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS
QUARTERBACK
Josh Dobbs passed for only 83 yards, lost one fumble and had two more go out of bounds. But he led the Volunteers in rushing (136 yards) and was a big reason they led by 13 points in the fourth quarter.
RUNNING BACKS
Tennessee’s three best playmakers are Dobbs and its top two backs. Jalen Hurd had 102 yards — most of them were tough ones he earned on his own — and two scores. Alvin Kamara had 71 all-purpose yards.
WIDE RECEIVERS
Tight end Ethan Wolf (four catches for 55 yards) continues to be a playmaker, but the receiving corps somehow managed just two catches for 7 yards. That’s not a misprint.
OFFENSIVE LINE
Florida had three sacks and seven other tackles for loss, but the Vols had 254 rushing yards in facing a good front seven focused on stopping the run.
DEFENSIVE LINE
Florida’s Kelvin Taylor recorded only his second 100yard rushing game, and the Vols struggled to pressure on quarterback Will Grier. Tennessee badly misses Curt Maggitt, who’s recovering from a hip injury.
LINEBACKERS
Jalen Reeves-Maybin and Darrin Kirkland Jr. combined for 13 tackles (three for loss) and two sacks. Florida found success targeting the linebackers in pass coverage.
SECONDARY
Three of the five pass plays of 15-plus yards the Vols allowed were on second-half fourth downs. Grier was 11-of-18 for 141 yards and two scores in the final period. The secondary needed to make a play and could not.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Trevor Daniel averaged 51.3 yards on six punts. Kamara and Evan Berry had nice returns. Aaron Medley made two field goals, but a difficult 55-yard attempt sailed wide at the final horn.
COACHING
Tennessee can’t lose the way it did. The game plan mostly worked for three quarters. But the decision not to go for two, the fourth-down timeouts, curious declining of penalties and the botched desperation drive outweigh any good.