Tennessee football report card in 34-13 loss to Aggies

Texas A&M linebacker Aaron Hansford (33) defends Tennessee defensive back Trel Riley (34) during a game between Tennessee and Texas A&M in Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Saturday, Dec. 19, 2020.
Texas A&M linebacker Aaron Hansford (33) defends Tennessee defensive back Trel Riley (34) during a game between Tennessee and Texas A&M in Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Saturday, Dec. 19, 2020. /
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Tennessee Head Coach Jeremy Pruitt walks on the field before a game between Tennessee and Texas A&M in Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Saturday, Dec. 19, 2020.
Tennessee Head Coach Jeremy Pruitt walks on the field before a game between Tennessee and Texas A&M in Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Saturday, Dec. 19, 2020. /

Coaching grades

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Offensive play-calling: C

Jim Chaney called a great first drive, and he was limited given the fact that the Vols didn’t have Eric Gray in the game. However, he still abandoned the run game too quickly, and he didn’t play to J.T. Shrout’s strengths when Shrout was in the game. That’s enough for us to make his grade average.

Defensive play-calling: B-

Derrick Ansley didn’t coach in the game, so Jeremy Pruitt called the plays. Pruitt actually did a pretty good job, as he forced a stop and an interception to open the second half. A couple of key penalties by the players cost Pruitt’s defensive strategies on multiple other drives. He wasn’t great, but he was above averaged, and it wasn’t all his fault.

Overall coaching grade: C+

In terms of head coaching, Pruitt was obviously dealing with a lot given the fact that Ansley and Jay Graham were both not on the sideline. He also dealt with the distraction of no Gray and Brian Maurer and that report that broke before the game on the investigation.

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You can say that was self-inflicted, and that’s probably true. But this is specifically about coaching in the game, and dealing with those things, Pruitt did reasonably well. He was still average, but he could have been much worse for Tennessee football on Saturday.