LEXINGTON, Ky. – Evan Berry had seen enough kickoffs fly over his head and out of the back of the end zone.
Tennessee’s kickoff return man was done taking a knee 5 yards deep in his end zone.
Three more touchbacks in Saturday night’s game at Kentucky made it 10 since the sophomore safety returned the opening kickoff against Arkansas, so when he caught a line-drive kick from Austin MacGinnis halfway into the end zone, Berry decided it was time to take it out.
More than 100 yards later, he was in the end zone for the third time this season.
“I wouldn’t call it frustration,” Berry said after the Volunteers won 52-21. “I kind of take it as a compliment, because if they don’t kick it to me, then that’s 25 free yards. It’s obviously some kind of fear they feel about it.
“I just run. It’s kind of just a feeling. Just run to open grass. The return team does a great job of getting their leverage and just making it easy for me, to be honest. All I do is run. They pretty much do all the work.”
Their work and Berry’s vision and speed have the younger brother of former Tennessee All-American Eric Berry leading the nation in kickoff return average by more than 8 yards, and he’s the only player in the country with three kick return touchdowns this season.
Berry’s next kick return touchdown – he’s likely got five games to add to his total – would give him the single-season program record.
“He had that look in his eye (that) he was going to bring it out regardless,” Vols coach Butch Jones said. “We have a lot of confidence in him, obviously, and our whole entire kickoff return unit. We invest so much time in that.
“Every time we go out on the field to return a kick, whether it’s a punt return or whether it’s a kickoff return, everyone on our sideline expects a big play.”
Cameron Sutton provided a second big special teams play with an 84-yard punt return less than three minutes after Berry’s return, but the cornerback said he wasn’t trying to match Berry with his own special teams score.
“It’s not motivation. I’m happy for him,” Sutton said. “That’s family to me and to all of us. We’re all excited for him. We expect that from him, every time he goes back there.
“We’re already on the sideline pointing to the end zone and alerting the field goal unit to get out there, because we’re expecting him to score.”
In a rush
After recording just nine sacks in the season’s first six games, Tennessee has seven in the past two.
The Vols have been able to generate a greater pass rush and pressure Alabama’s Jake Coker and Kentucky’s Patrick Towles after that aspect of the defense was absent during the first half of the season.
Derek Barnett had three sacks in two games, and Corey Vereen played two of the best games of his career.
Jones said Tennessee’s defensive linemen are playing with confidence and a “relentless approach” while getting off the ball and using their hands more effectively.
It has certainly helped the secondary.
“It’s been amazing,” Sutton said. “We’re always talking to those guys up front, because they’re our best friends. They handle business up front for us, and we take care of it on the back end. They’ve been doing a great job of pushing the pocket, getting offenses behind the sticks in our favor and just making plays.
“Guys are stepping up and making plays all across the D-line, and it’s definitely helping us out a lot.”
Off target?
One of the talking points from the second half Saturday was the targeting penalty and ensuing ejection of cornerback Emmanuel Moseley after his hit on Kentucky receiver Garrett Johnson.
Replays showed Moseley, who must sit out the first half against South Carolina this week, planting his shoulder into Johnson’s chest, though the hit did catch the bottom part of Johnson’s facemask as he took his third step after catching the ball on a crossing pattern.
Jones was very animated with officials when the replay official did not overturn the call.
“There’s only so many things I can say,” he said after the game. “All I can say is we have a young man that’s trying to play exceptionally hard. There’s no better person than Emmanuel Moseley, and he feels awful about it. We’ll do everything that we can to state our case.”
By NCAA rule, Tennessee could appeal the ejection and suspension only if replay review wasn’t available during the game.
With Moseley out, the Vols likely would move Malik Foreman outside and insert freshman Micah Abernathy at the nickel spot if anything were to happen to starters Sutton or Justin Martin.
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.