UT quarterback Joshua Dobbs carries toward the goal line in overtime, but fumbles the ball. It was recovered by Jalen Hurd, who scored the winning touchdown in the gam against Appalachian State Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016 in Neyland Stadium.Read more
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KNOXVILLE — Well, Tennessee is 1-0, but barely.
The Volunteers were fortunate to escape scrappy Appalachian State in an overtime win on Thursday night, but at least the promising season on Rocky Top in a decade didn’t begin with a defeat.
Tennessee will find plenty of mistakes to correct between now and its second game next week against Virginia Tech at Bristol Motor Speedway.
More analysis and reaction to Thursday night’s win is coming this weekend both online and in the Times Free Press, but here’s a look back at key players, moments and numbers from Tennessee’s win.
THURSDAY’S STAR
Tennessee running back Jalen Hurd finished with 110 yards on 28 carries, but his biggest contribution came when he dove on a loose football in the end zone for what turned out to be the winning touchdown. Quarterback Josh Dobbs lept from a few yards out for the end zone, took a huge hit and fumbled across the goal line. Hurd was there to save the day for the Vols.
THURSDAY’S STAT
The Vols had a few breaks go against them on Thursday night, but the ball bounced their way a few times. Tennessee fumbled four times and lost only one, the muffed punt by Cameron Sutton, which Appalachian State turned into a 7-0 lead. Dylan Wiesman recovered one of Hurd’s fumbles in the fourth quarter with the game tied. Luck was on the side of Tennessee on Thursday.
TURNING POINT
It was the final play, on which Micah Abernathy won the game for Tennessee by breaking up a fourth-down pass in the end zone intended for Appalachian State’s Shaedon Meadors and allowing the entire fan base to exhale collectively. Winning the game with a defensive stop on fourth down is a change from last season when the Vols never could get key fourth-down stops, particularly in their losses.
HIGHLIGHT PLAY
Tennessee’s offense was lethargic for nearly all of Thursday night’s win, but the Vols finally produced a big play in the fourth quarter. One play after hitting on a 14-yard pass to convert on third-and-9, Dobbs and Josh Malone hooked up again on a 67-yard touchdown pass. Aided by good protection, Dobbs dropped a beautiful deep pass over the defender to Malone
WHAT IT MEANS
Well, Tennessee escaped with a season-opening win with a performance that largely didn’t deserve a happy ending. The Vols struggled along the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, and Appalachian State often looked like the more physical and better-coached team. The Vols do have a couple extra days to assess the damage, but it’s easier to do at 1-0 than 0-1.
BY THE NUMBERS
3.6: Any way you want to slice it, Tennessee’s offense was bad in the first half on Thursday night. The Vols averaged a paltry 3.6 yards per play, and the offense’s longest play was a 16-yard completion to Preston Williams in the first quarter. Tennessee finished with just 131 yards of offense and punted on three of its five first-half possessions.
2-10: Butch Jones’s updated record at Tennessee when the Vols are trailing at halftime. The only other victory came last season in the comeback against Georgia. Tennessee trailed 24-3 in the second quarter and trimmed the deficit to 24-17 by halftime after two late touchdowns.
118-30: The combined scores of Appalachian State’s three defeats to Power 5 Conference opponents the past three seasons. Georgia beat the Mountaineers 45-6 in 2013, Michigan avenged its 2007 upset with a 52-14 rout and Clemson rolled 41-10 last season en route to the national championship game. Appalachian State was 0-4 against the SEC. None of those results mattered on Thursday night, though.
2: Josh Dobbs was sacked only twice on Thursday night, but it seemed like Tennessee’s quarterback was running for his life most of the time he dropped back to pass. The Vols struggled up front in protection and multiple times allowed pressure against three-man rushes. Struggling to block a good Sun Belt Conference defensive line bodes poorly for the season ahead for the Vols.
18: Thursday night was Tennessee’s 18th overtime game, the last coming against Oklahoma last season, when the Sooner completed a late rally by winning 31-24 in double overtime. The defeat dropped the Vols to 11-6 all-time in overtime. Tennessee’s most recent overtime victory was at South Carolina in 2014.
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.