KNOXVILLE – Ja’Wuan James and the rest of Tennessee’s offensive line probably just wanted to move on.
Instead, a group that entered the season as a source of optimism had to look back at the video of the Volunteers’ 33-23 loss at Florida last Saturday and revisit a tough afternoon.
“It definitely looked like they outworked us,” the sophomore right tackle said after Tuesday morning’s practice. “That was the disappointing part. Even myself, at times it looked like they were getting away from us at the end of blocks, guys scraping away at the end making tackles.”
The Volunteers (2-1, 0-1 SEC) struggled to move the Gators’ talented front four and finished with an ugly rushing total of minus-9 yards. It was the second time in three games this season they struggled to run the football, and though the fault doesn’t fall entirely on the offensive line, it’s imperative the Vols fix the problem with the upcoming schedule and receiver Justin Hunter’s season-ending knee injury limiting the passing attack.
“We’re priding ourselves on our running game this year, and it just hasn’t been there,” said left tackle Dallas Thomas. “That’s what we’re really going to key on [this off week]: Come out and focus and get better on our run game. That’s what Coach [Derek] Dooley wants, so we’ve got to give it to him.”