Tennessee football: Five takeaways from Vols’ 24-13 loss to Arkansas Razorbacks

2. Quarterback controversy

While the horrendous pass defense is what proved costly, a major headline for Tennessee football’s loss to the Arkansas Razorbacks is naturally going to involve what happened to the quarterbacks. If Jarrett Guarantano had not gotten hurt, this might have had a different outcome. In fact, Guarantano was somewhat vindicated by what happened after he went out.

For context, the Vols were still in it. They were up 13-7 after allowing a touchdown on the opening drive of the second half but then suffered a three-and-out. Guarantano, on 3rd and long, was injured trying to unrealistically dive for a first down while running. He suffered a head injury and left the game.

Enter Brian Maurer, who had a bit more mobility. Maurer was in for the next four drives, and all of them ended in three-and-outs unless you count a first down the Vols got off a defensive holding penalty one drive. He missed on all four passing attempts.

Finally, Jeremy Pruitt and Jim Chaney put in Harrison Bailey, but down 24-13 late, they didn’t let him do anything on his first drive until a 4th and 4 came up. On the final drive, he completed six of eight passes but couldn’t score.

Looking at all of this, Guarantano clearly should still be the starter if he’s healthy. However, neither Maurer nor Bailey looked equipped to handle the situation they were put in, and none of the staff had any confidence in them. That’s a major warning sign.