Mark WiedmerKNOXVILLE – If you’re wondering just exactly what caused the University of Tennessee football team to struggle so much against the Charlotte 49ers on Saturday, winning by only 14-3 against the Conference USA school, here’s your answer, courtesy of Marquez Callaway.
“A lot of us underestimated Charlotte,” said Callaway, whose 82-yard punt return may have done the most to keep the Volunteers from winding up underwater on the scoreboard. “We wanted to get on to Kentucky.”
Tennessee gets the wounded Wildcats inside Neyland Stadium this weekend, Kentucky’s dream season having crashed to earth with a 31-17 loss to Georgia on Saturday.
Playing as the Vols did against Charlotte in front of a homecoming crowd generously listed at 86,753, they might well lose to Big Blue. Playing as they did in the first half at South Carolina, or at Auburn, they would seem to have an excellent chance to upset the Wildcats, who were No. 11 in the AP Top 25 last week.
This isn’t to say that every Volniac might not have a reasonable cause for concern that any member of their favorite college football team would underestimate anyone, given the Big Orange entered Neyland Stadium just 3-5 this season.