Saturday at 7:45 p.m. EDT, the No. 15 Tennessee football team will host the Kennesaw State Owls for the last nonconference game before Southeastern Conference play begins. While this is not a “tune up” according to Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel, there are some things that need to be seen Saturday night.
Everyone knows that the competition level ramps up next weekend with No. 1 Texas coming to town. So, this is the last opportunity to polish some of the things we’ve seen over the first couple of weeks in a game situation.
The first thing I want to see Saturday is for the offensive line to bring the intensity across the board. Even though the rushing game has been great and Faizon Brandon has stayed pretty clean, this offensive line has to step it up a bit. As David Sanders Jr. noted earlier this week, the communication and fundamentals have to get better. Heupel also mentioned those things Thursday night on the Mike Keith Show.
“There’s some things that we can still be better at, a couple of communication things, some of our double teams combinations working together, but all in all, feel good about what we’ve done, but want to see a lot of growth here early in the year,” Heupel said.
Kennesaw State won’t give them the same level of resistance that Texas or anyone in the SEC will, but how the Vols come out will tell everyone a lot. Physicality can also stand to be turned up. Punch at the point of contact and bring it first. That may also help a bit with pass deflections at the line of scrimmage.
On the other side, Tennessee’s run game should eat well again Saturday night. This unit is averaging 314 yards per game at 6.8 yards per carry. Running backs coach De’Rail Sims wants to see more. I expect that their “not satisfied” mentality will carry through the room.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see a couple of 100-yard backs Saturday. Daune Morris was just two yards short of making that happen at Georgia Tech. His change of pace pairs well with De’Sean Bishop, and I look forward to seeing that get stronger throughout the season.
“You rushed for 300 yards, you don’t take that for granted,” Heupel said. “And that’s not just the offensive line. Tight ends are a huge part of that success too. And obviously the running backs doing a great job with the ball in their hands.”
Radarious Jackson has emerged as a trustworthy wide receiver. Going into Saturday, he has six catches for 102 yards. Will he get even more opportunities now, especially with the season-ending injury to Ethan Davis? The personnel package that Heupel decides to use could play a big part in that.
“Continuing to gain confidence in him, although we had great trust and confidence in him to begin with,” Heupel said. “He’s getting better as a young football player.”
Kennesaw State has people that can make plays, starting with quarterback Rickie Collins. He’s a guy that can break contain and make plays with his legs as well as his arm. I want to see Tennessee’s defense keep him at bay. The defensive front should be disruptive against this Kennesaw offensive line and not allow him to have success.
Mariyon Dye has gotten off to a great start this season with three sacks, and Xavier Gilliam has gotten after the quarterback as well. Behind them, Arion Carter and Amare Campbell should flow off the line’s push. Whether it’s Jeremiah Telander’s play off the edge or a safety such as Dejuan Lane coming down the alley, Tennessee has the guys to take care of the threat.
For the stuff between the ears, Tennessee has to clean up the penalties. Simple as that. There isn’t much else to say.
“First thing is not hurting ourselves, foolish penalties,” Heupel said. “I want to see us play clean, play smart.”
Quarterback Faizon Brandon has done amazing so far. Saturday night will present him a great opportunity to work on some things and get better. Heupel told me Monday that he just wanted to see him continue growing.
“Continuing growth and communication, understanding situational football,” Heupel said. “But I really like a lot of what he’s done. I said it a week ago. I think he’s gonna get better every rep, every series, every game. He’s continuing to grow and catalog information, and he’s getting better from it.”
While Kennesaw State is a talented team, Saturday has to be a night that Tennessee handles convincingly before heading into a showdown with No. 1 Texas the next week. The Vols need clean, sound football with everyone coming out of the game healthy.
