Tennessee football: Vols stock report following week one of 2019

Stock up

Kicking Game

This isn’t a shock to anybody. Tennessee football’s kicking game was the one positive from the day. Brent Cimaglia was the star, hitting three field goals on three attempts. One was a go-ahead kick from beyond 30 yards, and another was a 48-yarder. So all of Vol Nation should be excited about the difference he can make.

Meanwhile, Joe Doyle had a 48-yard punt on his only attempt and pinned the Georgia State Panthers inside the 20 in the process. Again, that’s a lot to celebrate. It was solid. Cimaglia was the big star, but Doyle gives the Vols no reason for concern. Add in Paxton Brooks’s superb kickoff skills, and this unit is a major plus. UT was already Punter U. It may now become Kicker U.

Jauan Jennings

There were lots of things to celebrate about the Vol receivers, but Jauan Jennings was the ultimate gamer. He finished with over 100 yards and a touchdown. Now, you can say that touchdown came in meaningless garbage time late. And you’d be right. But it was really just icing on the cake for what was an overall very good performance.

That performance included over 70 yards for much of the game and numerous third down conversions that had the Vols’ offense humming in the first half before they prematurely went to sleep. As a result, while the offense as a whole is tanking, Jennings’s stock is rising. There is a reason he is the No. 1 wideout for UT.