Tennessee football: Vols stock report following Week Three of 2019

Stock down

Offensive depth

Say what you want, but it’s concerning that Tennessee football only scored one touchdown in the second half, and it came on the opening drive of the third quarter. That gave them their 45-0 lead, and they didn’t score the rest of the way. As injuries pile up throughout the year, some of those guys will need to step up more. Otherwise, the season could even turn out worse than it’s looking.

The Vols have a lot of issues with depth, something we knew would happen for them coming in. But it showed when Jeremy Pruitt pulled the starters on Saturday. Pruitt has recruited well. He just clearly needs more help. To be fair, though, they haven’t had the chance early on to develop because of UT’s surprise struggles in their first two games. So maybe things will change now.

Tight ends

Dominick Wood-Anderson was supposed to be the star receiving tight end for the Vols this year, but Saturday was the second straight game in which he only had one reception. And it went for six yards. Meanwhile, Austin Pope and others have failed to emerge as well, although Princeton Fant had a 19-yard catch in the game on Saturday thanks to improvisation by Jarrett Guarantano.

One positive for this unit is that they have been solid blocking on the outside. That’s why Jim Chaney has been relying heavily on toss plays throughout this year. But Wood-Anderson was hyped up for his receiving abilities, and Guarantano has looked his way a few times. The Vols need to do more to put him in position to make big plays.