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Tennessee football: Five concerning signs from Jeremy Pruitt’s second year with Vols

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 12: Head coach Jeremy Pruitt of the Tennessee Volunteers looks on prior to the game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium on October 12, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 12: Head coach Jeremy Pruitt of the Tennessee Volunteers looks on prior to the game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium on October 12, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images
Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images /

5. Too many failures when moving the ball

There’s a great stat that takes into account a team’s failure to capitalize on opportunities, and that stat is yards per point. The goal is to obviously have the fewest yards per point because that means when you’re moving the ball, you usually score. Turnovers and red zone efficiency will factor into that.

In Tennessee football’s case, yards per point has been horrible. The Vols were No. 108 Jeremy Pruitt’s first year in fewest yards per point. This past year, they only moved up to No. 103. That’s not a good situation to be in.

Part of this was the fact that they had the worst fourth down percentage in the nation, two-for-12, and despite Brent Cimaglia, they were among the worst in red zone efficiency. Simply put, offenses are moving the ball but not capitalizing under Pruitt.

Now, to be fair, Pruitt has switched offensive coordinators. He went from Tyson Helton to Jim Chaney, so this will be the first year since 2016 that the Vols have the same offensive coordinator they had the previous year. That could be a big help going forward.

Until then, though, it’s a concerning sign that Rocky Top’s offense does not cash in. This high yards per point stat, which was 16.3 yards for every point in 2019, means they have the talent to move the ball. But play-calling and coaching help you cash in, and UT hasn’t done that. It has cost them in some close games and kept others closer than they should be, leading to our next point.

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