Tennessee vs. Florida Report Card: Grading the Vols

Sep 26, 2015; Gainesville, FL, USA; Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Joshua Dobbs (11) runs with the ball against the Florida Gators during the second half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Florida Gators defeated the Tennessee Volunteers 28-27. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Offensive Grades

Quarterback: B

Joshua Dobbs rushed for 136 yards, and Jauan Jennings came in and threw a 58-yard touchdown pass. With all of that, the quarterback play deserves credit in extremely unconventional fashion.

But Dobbs deserves some blame too. He had a critical fumble that set up a Florida touchdown, and he was unable to throw for even 100 yards. Florida’s Front Seven got pressure on him all day, and he was unable to respond to the heat with his arm.

That is a weakness of his we knew about before going into the game, so we can’t blame him too much, but it still does not fully excuse him either. He missed too many passes.

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Running Backs: A-

Jalen Hurd averaged fewer than four yards per carry, but he had a hard-earned 100+ yard game and did everything he could to wear down the Florida defense.

Hurd used his power and second efforts to continue to run for first downs, and he also picked up two critical touchdowns in this game. His running was the best part about the game for the Vols, and the only reason it is not an A+ is because his average was not higher.

But the workhorse load that Hurd shouldered and the way he built the lead for the Vols allows the entire unit to get an a A-.

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends: C

Once again, we cannot fully blame the wide receiver unit when you consider that they did not have many accurate passes thrown their way.

But this is supposed to be a crew that was loaded with talent coming in, and although Dobbs missed a few receivers on plays, they got their hands on lots of balls and could not come down with catches. The blame lies with them as well as Dobbs because they were recruited to be playmakers. And they are failing miserably at that.

Offensive Line: C+

They blocked their tails off and fought as hard as they could, but the youth of the offensive line showed once again in this game.

There is no reason that Jalen Hurd should ever run for a loss of yardage, but because of the line, he did a couple of times in this game. We knew Dobbs struggled under pressure. The Vols line could have done a better job helping him out, particularly when Florida sent blitzes.

All of that requires that we put blame on the line for what happened on Saturday. They played as well as they could, but they could have done more.

Overall Offensive Grade: B

The offense put up 27 points, which is much better than last year, but they still messed up a few times with a turnover and an inability to finish touchdown plays on two drives. Those things knock this unit back a little bit.

Next: Defensive Grades

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