Tennessee football Smokey points: Top five Vols performers vs. Chattanooga

We have a lot to say about Jarrett Guarantano. His issues remain when it comes to being too late to make decisions and sometimes making bad decisions. The latter was evident on his first throw, which should have been intercepted. But the other one ended up being a touchdown pass to Cedric Tillman, and even if he got away with the pass, it counts within the context of this game.

Tennessee football used all three quarterbacks in Saturday’s game against the Chattanooga Mocs, and it’s clear at this point that Guarantano is the Vols’ best quarterback. Jeremy Pruitt wasn’t lying when he made that statement earlier in the week.

Brian Maurer demonstrated a healthy level of quickness on his touchdown run, and J.T. Shrout does make good decisions. But Shrout can’t control his throws, and Maurer hasn’t proven that he has the arm.  Meanwhile, at the end of the day, Guarantano completed seven-of-eight passes for 142 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions.

We mentioned the TD pass he got away with. He also had a very easy one to Marquez Callaway. But there was a third Guarantano touchdown pass that he had to improvise on in the pocket, and for that he deserves credit. It’s clear he’s getting better as a quarterback. Saturday was just a chance for him to show that amidst all the loud criticism.