Tennessee football report card: Grading the Vols in their loss at Georgia
Offense
Quarterbacks: C+
Jarrett Guarantano took all the snaps until Tennessee football’s final offensive drive. Finishing 13-of-21 for 143 yards with two touchdown passes and no interceptions would seem like an efficient game to celebrate. However, Guarantano continues to make way too many safe throws when he needs to make the bigger play. That is why this unit gets a C+. At some point, Guarantano will have to be a bit more aggressive. Saturday was the time to do that, and he didn’t do it.
Running Backs: C-
Ty Chandler alone would give this unit an A. He played really well, and quite honestly, he didn’t get enough touches. But the rest of the Vols struggled. Madre London could not convert a handoff on 3rd an inches while lining up in the fullback spot. Jeremy Banks fumbled the ball late. The four backs overall only had 20 carries for 72 yards. Sorry, but that’s not good enough. Georgia was banged up enough to make plays. In fact, Chandler’s efforts are why this grade isn’t an F.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends: C-
Josh Palmer made a key play to put the Vols on the board with a great touchdown reception. Marquez Callaway also had a great catch before he got hurt. But the unit as a whole once again didn’t do much for the Vols, and the tight ends struggled again to block, especially Dominick Wood-Anderson. Those are crucial things when it comes to playing these positions, and the guys were non-existent. Not enough spectacular plays outweighed the mistakes, so these guys still get a C-.
Offensive Line: D+
As we said, Tennessee football going up against a weaker defensive line than they even faced the previous weak. So this was the Vols’ chance to finally make a splash blocking. But once again, they were useless in the first half. The struggles continued, and you saw it with the Dawgs picking up two sacks and the Vols as a whole averaging only two and a half yards a carry on the ground. Those are atrocious numbers, so even with improvement in the second half, this unit has a ton of work to do in the bye.
Overall offensive grade: C-
Tennessee football’s offense did come to life in the second half for a brief period, and that deserves to be noted. But it was a bit too late, and the Vols didn’t cross midfield until a personal foul penalty in the third quarter got them there. So it’s barely above a D, but not by much.