Tennessee football stock report following 38-14 loss at Florida
![Sep 25, 2021; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Tennessee Volunteers running back Tiyon Evans (8) runs with the ball as Florida Gators defensive lineman Princely Umanmielen (33) tackles with he face mask during the fourth quarter at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports Sep 25, 2021; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Tennessee Volunteers running back Tiyon Evans (8) runs with the ball as Florida Gators defensive lineman Princely Umanmielen (33) tackles with he face mask during the fourth quarter at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/f34ab8ad4858280c60a1d75c092e693d82ab1cb5b7ffb0716a62cd16c55b45df.jpg)
Stocks down
Interior of the trenches
Both sides of the line of scrimmage struggled severely on the inside Saturday. Tennessee football has had issues with its interior offensive line ever since Cooper Mays got hurt. Well, Mays came back in over the weekend, and he was even more rusty. Then he got hurt again, which created tons of issues, particularly with bad snaps, and it’s a discouraging sign going forward.
On the other side, the Vols’ rush defense finally got exposed against an elite rushing attack. Florida did to them what they had done to everybody. Sure, lots of it was Emory Jones making plays on the outside, but at the same time, there were times when the line just pushed forward in the second half, which is why they allowed 283 yards on the ground.
Quarterback health
Josh Heupel seemed to imply that Hendon Hooker got the start because Joe Milton III wasn’t 100 percent. Well, on the one play-calling mistake he made all night, Hooker fumbled a flea flicker back to him. Trying to recover the ball, he got hurt, and that brought Milton in.
Still struggling with accuracy while lacking in mobility due to his injury, Milton was awful. Now, the Vols have two banged up quarterbacks heading into Columbia, Mo. to take on the Missouri Tigers, and that’s a major concern for them. Harrison Bailey just doesn’t seem equipped for this offense.