Tennessee football: 10 key areas of improvement for Vols during bye week

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 15: Quarterback Kai Locksley #1 of the UTEP Miners tries to avoid a tackle from Defensive back Micah Abernathy #22 of the Tennessee Volunteers and Linebacker Jonathan Kongbo #99 of the Tennessee Volunteers during the second half of the game between the UTEP Miners and Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium on September 15, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee won the game 24-0. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images) /

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Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images /

Tennessee football has a lot to work on during the open date. Here are the top areas where the Volunteers need to improve in their off-week.

Okay, it’s time to be a little more realistic. After pointing to a few positive things following the first five games of the 2018 Tennessee football season, the fact of the matter is the Vols are 2-3. And they have lost all three games by exactly 26 points.

To make matters worse, their only two wins came against an FCS team an FBS team that is on a 17-game losing streak. So those three blowout losses are also their three only games against Power Five schools, and one was at home, one was at a neutral site and one was on the road.

Simply put, Tennessee football has a horrific resume heading into their bye week under first-year head coach Jeremy Pruitt. And the Vols, for all the talk about the excitement behind them, aren’t about to see their slate get any easier.

After their bye, they have to face the Auburn Tigers and South Carolina Gamecocks on the road, and stuck in between the two is just this random home game against the Alabama Crimson Tide! And now, looking at the stretch run of the season, the Missouri Tigers and Kentucky Wildcats could both be losses along with the Vanderbilt Commodores on the road.

So yes, 3-9 is a distinct possibility for this team. That means they have a ton of work to do if they want to turn things around and have a good first impression.

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