Jones: Problem beyond just DBs

Pass rush also criticized

Butch Jones wasn’t any happier with Tennessee’s defense in Saturday’s 59-30 win over Bowling Green when the coach watched it on video than he was when he saw it live.

The No. 25 Vols (1-0) surrendered 433 passing yards in the season opener, more than in any game last season, and 557 yards of total offense, more than they allowed in all but one game last season. They gave up 10 plays of 20 yards or more and three times allowed the Falcons to convert on fourth down.

“We did not play well defensively at all in the game,” Jones said at his press conference Monday as the Vols start preparations for their home opener against No. 19 Oklahoma (1-0) on Saturday (5 p.m. CDT, ESPN) at Neyland Stadium. “We had some individuals do some uncharacteristic things.”

However, Jones also said he did not believe the blame could be played solely on the defensive backs, who caught the most extensive criticism from fans.

“Playing great pass defense, there’s a lot of working parts and pieces and components,” Jones said. “Everyone wants to look at the secondary because

that’s what they see. They see the end of the play, but there’s a lot of things that go in at the beginning of the play as well.”

Part of the problem, Jones said, was the lack of a consistent pass rush. That was one of the defense’s strengths last season as the Vols finished with 35 sacks, including a combined 21 by defensive ends Curt Maggitt and Derek Barnett. On Saturday, the Vols had three sacks, which was better than last season’s average, but two were by linebackers Jalen Reeves-Maybin and Darren Kirkland Jr. on blitzes. The Vols struggled to get to the quarterback with a four-man rush.

“With a naked eye, everyone wants to point towards the secondary,” Jones said. “Well, that’s not how pass defense works. It’s all 11 individuals and it starts up front. It starts up front with generating a pass rush. It starts up front with our get-off, off the ball, and the use of our hands.”

Jones also credited Bowling Green’s offense.

“They’re gonna make some plays,” he said. “But if we have a mental error, if we have lack of effort, lack of fundamentals or technique, that’s where we have the issues and the problems.”

And there were too many mental errors, Jones said, at all three levels of the defense.

Such mistakes could cause a lot of trouble against Oklahoma, which piled up 539 yards of total offense in a 41-3 win over Akron on Saturday. Quarterback Baker Mayfield was playing in his first game with the Sooners after transferring from Texas Tech. He threw for three touchdowns and 388 yards, the most passing yards by an Oklahoma quarterback in a season opener.

The Sooners also use four wide receivers in a spread offense, with senior Sterling Shepard the top target. They have three potent options in the backfield with running backs Samaje Perrine, Joe Mixon and Alex Ross.

Said Jones: “We need to get better in a hurry.”