There are multiple differences between Saturday afternoon’s showdown involving Georgia and Tennessee compared to last year’s matchup.
The setting obviously will change, with Sanford Stadium in Athens playing host. The Bulldogs are ranked No. 1 nationally and the Volunteers No. 2, while last November’s clash in Knoxville contained top-ranked Georgia against an unranked Tennessee.
Yet the biggest difference from Georgia’s 41-17 cruising a season ago is that the Vols are developing a dynamic defense to complement their sizzling offense.
“We come in every day and don’t expect anything as far as the outside noise and things like that,” Tennessee junior defensive tackle Omari Thomas said Monday during a news conference. “We just come in focused on what we’ve got to do to get better. We know that we believe in each other and that our coaches believe in us.
“Our offense believes in us just like we believe in them. It all works hand in hand, and we’re all just continuing to pull our end of the bargain.”
While Georgia continues to be the model for defensive excellence in college football — the Bulldogs are allowing just 262.5 yards and 10.5 points per game after losing five first-round defenders in April’s NFL draft — Tennessee has made gargantuan gains on that side of the ball.
The Vols currently have the nation’s No. 9 run defense (allowing 92.9 yards per game) after ranking 60th last year (148.5), and they are 26th in scoring defense (yielding 21.0 points a contest) after finishing 90th a season ago (29.1). Tennessee’s biggest jump defensively has occurred on third down, with the Vols allowing a 30.97% conversion rate that ranks 18th nationally after winding up 101st last year (42.13%).
Even a pass defense that has struggled to a ranking of 127th and allows 300.8 yards per game has some momentum after holding Kentucky quarterback Will Levis to 98 aerial yards during last Saturday night’s 44-6 thumping of the Wildcats.
“One of the strengths for us defensively is the ability to rotate and play a lot of guys,” Vols second-year coach Josh Heupel said. “It’s next man up, and that allows you to go out and play as hard as you can. It allows you late in the second quarter and in the second half to be fresh and go compete.
“It’s a huge part to us defensively compared to a year ago.”
Tennessee entered this season with questions in the secondary and on the defensive front. The secondary has more versatility in terms of players who can be used at multiple positions, with Doneiko Slaughter proving that last Saturday, and it’s the healthiest the position area has been all season.
The return of safety Jaylen McCollough after a two-game absence that followed his Oct. 9 arrest also bolstered last week’s efforts, with Heupel referring to McCollough as his defensive quarterback.
Up front, the Vols have thrived under position coach Rodney Garner, who along with secondary coach Willie Martinez were members of Georgia’s 2005 SEC title staff under Mark Richt that included running backs coach Kirby Smart. In his seventh season as Georgia’s head coach, Smart knows just what to expect from Garner.
“He’s old school when it comes to striking people and playing with physical toughness,” Smart said Monday. “You know when you’re playing against one of his defensive lines, they’re not going to run or shy from contact. They’re not going to back down from a challenge.
“He coaches tough. He coaches hard, and he hasn’t changed that with the change in generations of players. He was coaching them hard when I was a GA here (in 1999).”
Tennessee’s defense was impressive during its 40-13 win at LSU earlier this month, but both LSU and Kentucky did not have offensive lines like the Vols will encounter come Saturday. The Vols have proven to be very formidable up front offensively, which is a factor in their defensive improvement as well.
“Day in and day out, I’ve seen the defensive guys put in the extra work,” Vols sixth-year senior quarterback Hendon Hooker said. “They’ve been making great plays on the ball, and they’re just coming out with their hair on fire. It’s a heated battle out there on the practice field.”
Sideline targeting
One of the rare things that went wrong for Tennessee against Kentucky was Vols left guard Jerome Carvin head-butting a helmet-less left tackle Gerald Mincey on the sideline.
“That whole situation was crazy,” a smiling Carvin said Monday. “Coming off the field after scoring a touchdown, you’re excited. It’s an emotional game. I was excited to see Mincey and clearly didn’t know he didn’t have a helmet on.
“I apologized and felt so bad, but he’s a tough guy who took it pretty well.”
Wright honored
Vols senior right tackle Darnell Wright earned SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week for a second time this season on Monday. Wright did not allow a sack or a pressure against the Wildcats and did not commit a penalty in 68 snaps.
Wright has not allowed a sack in 540 snaps this season.
“It’s the purpose he’s had inside the building, and it’s another year of maturity in football understanding and how he approaches the practice field or weight room,” Heupel said. “He’s been very intentional and has gained another year of strength, so his power and athleticism shows up in a different way than it did a year ago.
“He was good a year ago, too, but if you put all those pieces together, it lends itself to him playing at the level that he is.”
Tillman’s return
Fifth-year senior receiver Cedric Tillman didn’t have huge numbers last weekend following his return from a high-ankle sprain, tallying four catches for 22 yards, but Heupel and his teammates are certainly happy to have him back.
“I think you could see what it meant to him to be back on the field with his teammates,” Heupel said. “After the first or second catch, you could see the emotion come out. I thought he played extremely well. He looked fluid and natural and was playing full speed.”
Said Hooker: “Ced has been with us here the whole time and locked in mentally.”
Odds and ends
Junior receiver Jalin Hyatt’s 14 receiving touchdowns this season match Georgia Tech’s 14 total touchdowns and are one more than Iowa’s 13. … Tennessee completed its first undefeated October since 2006, which obviously coincided with ending the 15-year losing streak to Alabama. … The Vols against Kentucky allowed their fewest points to an SEC opponent since a 34-3 drubbing of Mississippi State in 2008. … Punter Paxton Brooks not only had a 51-yard effort against the Wildcats but placed a 41-yarder at the 2 and a 36-yarder at the 3. … Tennessee’s home finale next week against Missouri will have a noon start on either CBS on ESPN.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.