Tennessee football: Turning points, highlights in Vols’ 17-13 Kentucky win

Notable plays defined Tennessee football’s victory over the Kentucky Wildcats. Here are the key moments in the game for the Volunteers.

Not only did they show resiliency by coming back from a 1-4 start, but Tennessee football showed incredible resiliency coming back from 13-3 down to beat the Kentucky Wildcats in this game. The Vols are now 5-5 and 3-3 in the SEC.

Heading into a bye week, Jeremy Pruitt’s team will have two chances to make a bowl game starting Nov. 23. They can either beat the Missouri Tigers on the road or the Vanderbilt Commodores at home. Or they could win both and put eight wins on the table.

Anyway, they scored a huge, close win in Lexington on Saturday. And it came down to a few plays, but their constant focus, from the quarterback switch to Jarrett Guarantano through the consistent defensive stands, all deserve a shoutout. Here are the turning points and highlights in Tennessee football’s defensive win.

Darel Middleton blocks extra point

It was almost time to panic. Tennessee football had just allowed a blocked punt and a second touchdown by the Kentucky Wildcats. They were up 13-0. But Darel Middleton provided the first spark of the game for this team in an unconventional way.

Middleton burst threw the line on the extra point and blocked it. The block didn’t seem like much at the time, but it is why Kentucky had to go for a touchdown at the end of the game instead of a tying field goal. So this ended up being crucial.

Nigel Warrior interception

Down 13-3, the Vols appeared to be in trouble in the second quarter. They allowed the Kentucky Wildcats to convert a 4th and 2 near midfield in the first half, and Mark Stoops’s team had all the momentum. But then UT cashed in on a mistake from Eddie Gran.

Nigel Warrior intercepted a pass from Lynn Bowden on the very next play. That was one of Bowden’s seven passes on the day. Warrior’s pick almost was a touchdown, but he stepped out of bounds just barely on the run back. UT did not score off the pick, but it was crucial towards killing one drive and keeping the Vols in the game.

Marquez Callaway touchdown catch

This was huge. Opening the second half, the Vols had gotten to the red zone. They then had a touchdown to Dominick Wood-Anderson called back due to an ineligible receiver downfield. Jarrett Guarantano responded by a critical first down run on 3rd and 11.

Two plays later, Guarantano hit Marquez Callaway on a fade pattern. Callaway came down with the catch, and the Vols cut the lead to 13-10. It was Guarantano’s first drive in the game, and he rallied the team with this touchdown. Callaway made another huge play.

Josh Palmer touchdown catch

Just like the Marquez Callaway touchdown, Jarrett Guarantano had to overcome what he thought was a touchdown pass. But this time, it was to the same guy. Guarantano led Tennessee football back into the red zone right after the Vols got the ball back, and he found Palmer for a third down conversion. Palmer appeared to run the ball in for a touchdown, but his knee was down.

Two plays later, Guarantano threw a fade to Palmer, and he caught the ball and came down with one foot in. A review showed that he truly did have a foot in, resulting in a score to give the Vols the lead and all the momentum. They went up 17-13 after this one.

Daniel Bituli fourth down stop

They had gotten two fourth down stops before. Then Ty Chandler fumbled the ball on a simple handoff. So the Vols’ defense would have to come through again, and when the Kentucky Wildcats drew a substitution penalty from UT’s defense on 3rd and goal, it was clear they would score. But then they didn’t.

Bituli and Henry To’o To’o got a key stop on a 3rd down run. Then Bituli sniffed out an option play on fourth down, getting the stop. After a Jarrett Guarantano 3rd down run, the Vols secured the win. But it was because of Bituli making the key stop. Darel Middleton’s blocked extra point, though, is why UK had to go for it anyway. So it all tied in together.