Tennessee football: Five key moments that defined Vols turnaround for 2019

1. Jarrett Guarantano third down conversion run at the Kentucky Wildcats

After everything they had done, which we just showed you, Tennessee football needed one more play to get to 5-5. Once again, their offense, behind the arm of Jarrett Guarantano, would need to get a first down to win the game.

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With so little time left and the fact that the Kentucky Wildcats didn’t have a quarterback, it made no sense for Jim Chaney to call a passing play. After all, the Vols had it 3rd and 4 from their own eight-yard line. But the defense was tired, so he likely didn’t want them to be back on the field.

Once again, it was a dilemma similar to the Mississippi State Bulldogs. And a third down conversion there secured their first win in this turnaround. What would Chaney call here? Well, he turned to his much-maligned quarterback who once again came off the bench to lead the Vols to their first road victory of the season.

Guarantano ran a bit of misdirection, and then he kept the ball himself the other way. Thanks to solid blocking, he used his vision to scramble for the first down. It was the play to secure the biggest win of the year for the Vols, and it was the perfect culmination of everything they had done to turn things around.

The season is obviously not over yet. Tennessee football still has to win another game just to reach bowl eligibility. And they have to win two to avoid a losing season. But that play got them to 5-5, and it proved their newfound will to win that developed from a series of plays over time. The series of plays is what got them from 1-4 to .500.