KNOXVILLE - Tennessee's promising season heads into its final month a disappointment due in large part to the struggles on offense.
The Volunteers can point to a long list of injuries to key players as the reason for problems on defense, but the regression of an offense returning experience and talent from last season is more concerning.
Offensive coordinator Mike DeBord was honest earlier this week when asked about the current identity of his offense.
"Inconsistent," DeBord said. "We've shown great signs (against) Florida and Georgia and A&M where we can do great things, and then we've had our inconsistencies. It's something we're working at. I think we've got to get our confidence back, get our swag back a little bit: 'Hey, we're good football players, we're a good football team and a good football unit.'
"We've just got to get that back a little bit. That's one thing we're going to work on."
Unlike last season, when the Vols could depend on a rushing attack that finished second in the Southeastern Conference and produced nearly 224 yards per game, they aren't doing anything well on offense right now. Tennessee is eighth in the conference in passing and 10th in rushing, and it is 11th in yards per play (5.3) and yards per game (381.5) after averaging nearly 5.6 yards per play and almost 41 yards more per game last season.
In only four games last season did Tennessee fail to reach 400 yards of offense, but it's happened five times already this season, including 163- and 297-yard outings against Alabama and South Carolina the past two games.
What makes the struggles more maddening are the 498- and 684-yard explosions against Florida and Texas A&M.
"(When) we haven't played well, we're not executing at a high level," quarterback Josh Dobbs said. "The other defense is out there and they're doing different things, but at the end of the day we're hurting ourselves. We're stopping ourselves, whether it's pre-snap penalties, being behind the chains, turnovers - little things that we shouldn't do if we want to be successful."
The Vols were excellent starting games last season, when they relied on scripted plays to score six touchdowns and attempt three field goals while punting just twice on 13 opening-game possessions. This season they have punted on every opening possession except one, when they scored a touchdown against Ohio.
"We don't wait till after the first quarter to adjust or anything," DeBord said. "We talk after the first series, then the second series and we continue to talk about the things we need to change or do different. When I was asked about our offense and said it's inconsistent, it's inconsistencies with (mistakes) whether it's penalties, whether it's snaps, whether it's a fumble.
"We can't defeat ourselves that way."
The play-calling often seems to lack creativity or a general direction.
Earlier in the season the Vols generated successful plays by setting them up with similar looks. The wheel route to Jalen Hurd, set up by using him as a lead blocker on an outside run, went for a touchdown against Florida and a near-touchdown against Georgia. The Vols created an advantageous matchup for Josh Malone's touchdown against the Gators.
One of Tennessee's most successful formations this season has been a five-wide set to give Dobbs an empty backfield and create an advantageous matchup for running back Alvin Kamara out of the slot.
Yet it's become easy for opposing defenses to bottle up Tennessee's offense.
DeBord said defenses are playing Tennessee differently than they're showing on video, but head coach Butch Jones said the Vols are seeing plenty of Bear fronts with five defenders at the line of scrimmage and Cover 1 looks behind it with man-to-man defense and a safety over the top.
The five-man fronts alter the blocking combinations on the offensive line and create more one-on-one matchups, and if there's one breakdown up front, the play likely won't succeed.
South Carolina's defensive plan was to get Tennessee behind the chains and into obvious passing situations. The Gamecocks were aggressive attacking the edge with outside linebackers on early downs. On passing downs they would play coverage while rushing just three or four to force Dobbs to be a pocket passer and take away his scrambling skills.
"I feel like we've been put in (good) positions," Dobbs said. "At the end of the day it's players, not plays. It's the players that make the plays come alive and go out and execute the game plan. When we're executing at a high level, we haven't been stopped all season."
The lack of player development on the offensive line and the unit's regression in terms of physical play and techniques are alarming, but the problems neither start nor end there.
"It's frustrating, but we can't point the finger at one person," left tackle Brett Kendrick said. "We've all had our ups and downs. We're just looking to come out at practice and become more consistent. We've got to execute. That's huge on offense, and we've proven we can do it. We've had explosive games.
"We've just got keep on coming out at practice and trying to work on our consistency."
Right now the lack of consistency is defining what's been a disappointing offense.
"You can't ever have excuses," DeBord said. "Coaches can't have them. Players can't have them.
"Whenever you show up on game day, that's what you are, and we've got to get better."
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.