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Tennessee football: 10 offseason improvements Vols must make before 2019

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 29: A general view of Neyland Stadium during the South Carolina Gamecocks game against the Tennessee Volunteers on October 29, 2011 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 29: A general view of Neyland Stadium during the South Carolina Gamecocks game against the Tennessee Volunteers on October 29, 2011 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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10. Executing trick plays

Tennessee football tried five onside kicks in 2018 against the Florida Gators, Auburn Tigers, Alabama Crimson Tide, Missouri Tigers and Vanderbilt Commodores. Not one of those kicks was recovered.

Sure, the chances of recovering an onside kick are already slim. But they are probably greater than going 0-for-5 on surprise onside kicks. And this was an issue for the team all season. Whenever they needed a spark with a trick play, they just couldn’t execute.

Now, to be fair, it’s No. 10 on this list because the meat and potatoes are more important than random trick plays. But when you’re undermanned, you’ve got to be able to execute on some of those. And the Vols are going to be undermanned once again next year.

As a result, trick plays are going to be crucial for them to try to steal a couple of wins. Despite the schedule getting easier next year, they still have to visit the Florida Gators and Alabama Crimson Tide while hosting the Georgia Bulldogs. And it’s not like the Kentucky Wildcats on the road or the Vanderbilt Commodores at any time are easy wins anymore.

So yes, Jeremy Pruitt needs to work on better execution of such things this offseason. If he doesn’t, the Vols are going to have another disappointing year, and at that point, Pruitt’s job could be in trouble heading into 2020. The creativity is already there, which is a good thing. But the execution now has to follow.

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