KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 1 Texas’ 20-17 win over No. 14 Tennessee in the biggest game of the week did not feel as close as the score. After the first three weeks of action, everyone knew that this week would be the biggest test for the Vols, especially up front and for freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon.
Brandon had a rocky day inside Neyland Stadium. He took 10 sacks and finished the day 17 of 29 for 145 yards. Brandon threw one late touchdown with 1:22 left in the game. He also rushed 23 times for just two yards. Tennessee rushed for only 70 yards on 44 attempts after coming into the day averaging 299 yards rushing. Texas’ defensive line was powerful all game long. Colin Simmons, the highly touted edge rusher, tied a Longhorns record with five sacks. Texas’ Rasheem Biles finished with a game-high 13 tackles.
Tennessee’s offensive line had to protect the young quarterback better. Anyone who’s watched sports before knew the first three games didn’t have the caliber of competition they would see Saturday. That was especially true for Brandon. He had not been tested and pressured like he was against Texas. A lot of that is on the offensive line, and some of it is on him, but that is a learning experience to build on for Brandon and everyone involved.
“It’ll be a bunch of everything,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said after. “The O-line’s got to be better, can be better. At times we’re giving up pressure off of chips on protection. We’ve got to be able to execute that better. There’s times quarterback, eyes, decision-making, not getting rid of it when there’s opportunities to get rid of it. You combine all of that together, and you play good personnel on the other side, you just can’t win that way.”
It’s also easy for spectators with a bird’s-eye view to say what he should have done, and I would never say I know what it’s like to be an SEC quarterback. But the sooner Brandon can see the field and make decisions against these defenses, the better he will be.
On the other side of the ball, the Vols actually brought it to Texas. The Longhorns gave up six sacks, so it was not the best day for them either. Arion Carter led the Vols’ defense with 11 total tackles. Tyree Weathersby recorded 2.5 sacks, along with six tackles, 2.5 for loss. The Vols’ defense did all it could to keep Tennessee in the game.
“I thought the line of scrimmage controlled the game,” Heupel said. “Bottled up their run game for the most part. Late in the fourth quarter they hit us on a couple of consistent runs in that last drive. They applied pressure to the quarterback. There was a lot to like there.”
Texas ran for only 61 yards on 38 carries for 1.6 per. That is elite run defense, and the Longhorns went deep into the fourth quarter with just 25 yards rushing.
My only thing for the day was the extra time Arch Manning got on his big shots. I get it, nobody is perfect. If you break down his 201 passing yards, 120 of those came on four throws of 43, 30, 29, and 18 yards. Manning finished 14 of 19 for 201 with no touchdowns and one interception to Kayin Lee. Texas running back Raleek Brown scored both Texas touchdowns.
It all comes back to the work up front offensively for Tennessee. The Vols have to figure this out for this season to be successful. Will they face a front that is as talented as Texas’ the rest of this season? Who knows, but that isn’t what matters. There were plays where Texas got great pushes just going one-on-one with the guy in front of them. It wasn’t always twists and exotic looks that generated pressure.
“Ultimately we’ll decide what we’re going to be,” Heupel said. “We’ve got to fix what’s correctable, learn from it, grow from it.”
Tennessee just has to take care of itself and figure it out.
