Tennessee football’s top five performers in 31-27 win at South Carolina

19-of-31, 259 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT; 5 carries 12 yards, 1 rush TD

Once again, Jarrett Guarantano got a ton of flack for his play throughout the night. Much of it was well-deserved, as he missed at least five easy throws, a huge reason Tennessee football was an abysmal one-for-11 on third downs throughout the night. Vol Twitter was ready to yank him in the first quarter, and the onslaught didn’t stop.

However, as is commonly the case, Guarantano still made the key plays to win the game, and he left with a stat line that would suggest he had no trouble. The guy completed over 60 percent of his passes, averaged nearly eight and a half yards per attempt, scored two total touchdowns and didn’t have any turnovers. What more could you ask for?

Well, we could even give more credence to his play. Guarantano’s touchdown pass came in the fourth quarter with the score tied at 24, so it was a clutch play too. And this was all against a Will Muschamp-coached defense. Taking this into account, he has to make the list.

Now, yes, Guarantano struggles with accuracy. However, his big arm, his ability to stand in the pocket and take hits, and his proper decision-making all outweigh a few errant throws that will come each game. When the Vols went up-tempo in the second half, Guarantano had no trouble operating the offense. Limited mistakes and key plays to win the game put him on here.