Tennessee running back Jalen Hurd (1) escapes from Appalachian State defensive lineman Caleb Fuller (51) during the first half of an NCAA college football game Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016 in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)KNOXVILLE – Josh Dobbs carried a bag of Starburst candy into the media room for his postgame interview following Tennessee’s season-opening overtime win against Appalachian State on Thursday night.
The senior quarterback could have been hiding an ice pack in the large yellow bag.
Dobbs took a jarring hit to the midsection from Appalachian State’s Kennan Gilchrist as he audaciously leapt, stretched for the end zone and fumbled, and he and the Volunteers were relieved to see Jalen Hurd pounce on the loose ball for what turned out to be the winning touchdown.
“I just got the wind knocked out of me,” Dobbs said. “It happens. It’s football. I’m all good. I told (Gilchrist) after the game, ‘You got me, that was a good hit.’ We have a lot of respect for them and the way they play.
“We knew coming into the game they were a team with high-energy and has a nose for the football.”
For most of the game it was painful to watch Tennessee’s offense.
The Vols were outplayed up front and too predictable on first down, and it nearly produced what would have been a disastrous defeat.
Playing its base 3-4 defense, Appalachian State, which ranked 11th nationally in total defense in 2015, generated pressure on Dobbs and limited Hurd and Alvin Kamara, who received only nine touches, to 3.85 yards per carry.
“With their scheme, they move (the front) a lot,” Tennessee coach Butch Jones said. “They relied on their quickness, and I thought that was really evident. We knew the ability to sustain blocks was going to be a challenge, just because of their quickness up front.
“They do a good job schematically. They were a little bit undersized in terms of weight, so they move the front on every snap and used their quickness. I thought they did a really good job with that.”
A poor performance by the offensive line is the most alarming of the red flags raised on Thursday night.
Coleman Thomas was flagged for holding and false start penalties, and he was whipped by Myquon Stout, a 6-foot-1, 275-pound nose tackle, on Appalachian State’s first sack. Caleb Fuller beat Jashon Robertson and bounced off Hurd’s hit to record the Mountaineers’ second sack. Brett Kendrick also was flagged for holding.
In the first half Dobbs narrowly misfired on two potential long completions to Josh Malone and Josh Smith because he had pressure in his face as he threw.
“It’s never a good sight to see the quarterback scrambling,” Malone said. “I’m assuming they really had some good pressures and we probably didn’t execute the protection that well. It’s just something we’re going to have to build off, watch film and break it down.”
The mistakes weren’t limited to the offensive line, though, as Preston Williams couldn’t complete a touchdown catch on the opening drive, Hurd fumbled early in the fourth quarter and Dobbs struggled and was a non-factor running the ball, though the Vols didn’t call many designed quarterback runs.
Dobbs finished with negative rushing yardage for the first time in his career and, in addition to mishandling a third-quarter snap and taking a risk with his overtime lunge, threw an awful interception with Tennessee in field goal range just before halftime.
“We had points there,” Dobbs said. “A field goal could have changed the whole outcome. At the end of the game we would have been up by three. That’s something I definitely thought about going into halftime, that in that situation, if it happens again, just be smart and don’t play outside of yourself, but if the play is there, make it.
“That’s kind of my mindset. If the play’s there, if I can go out and make a play with my legs, my arms – anything – then I’m going to make it. If not’s there, be smart.”
On 29 first-down plays, Tennessee called for 19 runs and 10 passes. The Vols ran the ball on six of their first seven first-down plays to open the game and on the first seven first downs of the second half. Tennessee gained 3 yards or less on 13 of those rushing attempts, and both sacks came on first down.
Malone’s 67-yard touchdown catch on a deep ball was a bright spot, but Tennessee turns its attention to Virginia Tech with some concerns to address on offense.
“We never doubt ourselves,” Dobbs said. “There’s no one in football that’s going to pick you up if you starting doubting yourself at the end of the day. It’s all self-confidence. At the end of the day, it’s what can we do to be better. We can start faster, we can do different things, we can execute better throughout the game.
“There’s never any doubt. We understand our skills and capabilities. We understand how good we are, and now we just have to play to that potential.”
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.