KNOXVILLE - After 38 seconds it looked like the Tennessee Volunteers were in for an easy Saturday afternoon at a sun-drenched Neyland Stadium.
The rest of the game didn't go as well.
Tennessee overcame a multitude of mistakes and the loss of defensive stars Cameron Sutton and Jalen Reeves-Maybin to beat Ohio 28-19 and continue its imperfect unbeaten start to the season.
"Our goal was to be 3-0 at this point in time, and we're 3-0 at this point in time," Vols coach Butch Jones said, "but I think every person to a person would tell you we have to get a lot better starting conference play next week."
The desired improvement may be impossible for a defense that could be without three of its best players when Florida rolls into Knoxville next Saturday.
Already without linebacker Darrin Kirkland Jr., the Vols lost cornerback Sutton to a leg injury in the first quarter, and Jones said he'll miss "an extended period of time." With Justin Martin dealing with an ankle injury and Malik Foreman serving a one-game suspension for violating team rules, freshman Baylen Buchanan was pressed into action at corner.
"It was definitely tough to see Cam go down," nickel back Rashaan Gaulden said. "He's one of our soul leaders in the defensive backfield and the defense. Seeing Baylen grow up before my eyes, that's very encouraging. He made some plays out there. I saw it in his eyes all week that he was ready to go, and he stepped up when the opportunity came."
Reeves-Maybin hurt his shoulder in the second quarter and did not return, and though Jones said he's hopeful the senior captain will be available to face the Gators, Colton Jumper and Cortez McDowell were Tennessee's linebacker duo for most of the afternoon.
Promising linebacker Quart'e Sapp also went down with a knee injury in the first half.
"It creates a lot of confidence in those guys who stepped in today to play," McDowell said. "Myself and for Baylen, really it was a confidence check for us. It's really just what are we going to take from today's game and how we're going to apply it for the future and how we're going to get better from it."
The red zone turned out to be the difference in the game, as Tennessee's shorthanded defense forced Ohio, a four-touchdown underdog, to kick four field goals while the Vols' boom-or-bust offense scored four touchdowns.
Josh Dobbs hit Josh Malone for a touchdown pass on the third play of the game, and Tennessee's defense forced a quick three-and-out, but a penalty on the punt gave the Bobcats a new series of downs.
It was just the start of a mistake-prone performance for the Vols, who fumbled five times and recovered them all, were flagged nine times, gave up three sacks and had an easy catch bounce off a receiver's hands for an interception.
"What do you think? I'm not happy with it," Jones said. "That's not the way we play football around here. The penalties are inexusable. The balls on the ground are inexcusable. That's not how we're going to play football around here. Our players understand that, but I'm pulling my hair out, because never a football team that we've had has ever been like that.
"It's bizarre ways we're dropping the ball. It's untimely. Those are momentum killers. We'll go back to work again and we'll work hard to correct that, but as we move into conference play and all that, we can't do that or we don't have a chance. We've got to clean those things up in a hurry, and that falls on my shoulders.
"I'm going to make sure it's pointed out and we get better at it."
Tennessee entered the fourth quarter with less than 250 yards of offense and endured one stretch when it had four three-and-outs in six possessions, one of which was a one-play possession at the end of the first half.
The Vols allowed just 118 yards in the second half, but they lacked disruption and gave up three pass plays of 29 yards or more.
The efforts from the first three games won't cut it the next four weeks with a season-defining SEC gauntlet of Florida, Georgia, Texas A&M and Alabama on the docket.
"We're never satisfied and we're never down on each other," Gaulden said. "Next week is a new week. We get to prepare and bring a different mentality, and we're just going to have fun out there."
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com