Tennessee defense knows Gators' speed is major threat

Staff photo by C.B. Schmelter / Tennessee linebacker Daniel Bituli reaches to knock down a pass by UTC quarterback Nick Tiano during last Saturday's game at Neyland Stadium.
Staff photo by C.B. Schmelter / Tennessee linebacker Daniel Bituli reaches to knock down a pass by UTC quarterback Nick Tiano during last Saturday's game at Neyland Stadium.
photo Staff photo by C.B. Schmelter / Tennessee linebacker Daniel Bituli reaches to knock down a pass by UTC quarterback Nick Tiano during last Saturday's game at Neyland Stadium.

KNOXVILLE - Tennessee football players have used the word "fast" multiple times this week when referring to the Florida Gators.

That team speed is one of the challenges the Volunteers will face on defense Saturday in Gainesville.

The ninth-ranked Gators (3-0) returned quarterback Feleipe Franks, running back Lamical Perine and a number of talented receivers from last season's 10-win team. The loss of Franks to what turned out to be a season-ending ankle injury in their Southeastern Conference opener at Kentucky last Saturday night didn't slow things down.

Redshirt junior Kyle Trask took over behind center and led three touchdown drives, including the quarterback running 4 yards for the go-ahead score in the fourth quarter of the Gators' 29-21 victory.

Florida coach Dan Mullen stated Monday it's likely the Gators will go with two quarterbacks for Saturday's noon game against Tennessee (1-2), which will be televised by ESPN, with Trask potentially splitting reps with redshirt freshman Emory Jones to utilize different skill sets. Trask is considered more of a passer while Jones is seen as a dual threat.

"These guys have really good skill players, from tight ends to running backs to wide receivers," Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt said Monday. "They spread the ball around, they'll hit you with RPOs (run-pass options). They're really stubborn when it comes to running the football. They've always done a very nice job running the football and being creative in how they do it. Now they've got really good playmakers at wide receiver, so they can get the ball out there and they can hurt you with runs after the catch, screens, or throw the ball down the field."

photo Staff photo by C.B. Schmelter / Tennessee defensive lineman Kingston Harris squares off with UTC offensive lineman Cole Strange during last Saturday's game at Neyland Stadium.
photo Staff photo by C.B. Schmelter / Tennessee linebacker Henry To'o To'o (11) goes to tackle UTC running back Ailym Ford (32) during last Saturday's game at Neyland Stadium.

The Gators have struggled some running the ball this season, averaging just 139.7 yards per game in wins over Miami, 24-20, UT-Martin, 45-0, and Kentucky. They had 231 yards on the ground against UT-Martin, a Football Championship Subdivision program, but they had a combined 188 yards on 55 carries in the wins over Miami and Kentucky.

They've made up for those deficiencies by averaging 288.7 passing yards and showing depth at receiver, led by Van Jefferson (12 catches for 201 yards), Josh Hammond (nine for 129) and Trevon Grimes (eight for 116), with tight end Kyle Pitts (nine for 99) also contributing consistently. Perine has averaged just 3.5 yards per carry but has 12 catches for 63 yards.

The defensive challenge for the Vols in their SEC opener is at least two-fold, because they have to figure out a way to manufacture some pressure up front while also maintaining coverage in the back.

And they must show discipline - lots of discipline.

"It's really important," said senior linebacker Daniel Bituli, who missed Tennessee's losses to Georgia State and BYU before returning in last week's shutout of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. "We've got to come in and watch some film as much as we can. We know Coach (Dan) Mullen has a history with Coach Pruitt. They've been going at it for a couple of years. We've got to listen to Coach Pruitt this week on the things that we get during the game. We've just got to prepare and gain that confidence that we need."

The Vols' defense struggled with lining up correctly early in the opener, but that has improved in the past two games - aside from one late-game blunder by the secondary at the end of the fourth quarter in the double-overtime loss to BYU, that unit hasn't had any major missteps. Since giving up 213 yards on the ground against Georgia State, the Vols have allowed an average of 283 total yards per game.

Tennessee's ability to generate quarterback pressure Saturday could alleviate some of the pressure on the players in the secondary. Junior safety Theo Jackson says the Vols' defensive backs will be ready either way.

"They have a lot of good players, but with our film study, we can create a game plan to stop their offense," Jackson said. "With good film study we can put up a good fight.

"We love the challenge. Right now we're harping on techniques, and we have to get in the film room to know the little details so we can get a good jump on their routes."

Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3 or at Facebook.com/VolsUpdate.

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