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Tennessee football: Five takeaways from Vols’ 45-20 win vs. South Carolina

By Caleb Calhoun

Teammates swarm Tennessee running back Tiyon Evans (8) after Evans scored a touchdown during a NCAA football game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the South Carolina Gamecocks at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021.Kns Tennessee South Carolina Football Bp
Teammates swarm Tennessee running back Tiyon Evans (8) after Evans scored a touchdown during a NCAA football game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the South Carolina Gamecocks at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021.Kns Tennessee South Carolina Football Bp /
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Tennessee defensive lineman Matthew Butler (94) celebrating after a defensive stop during the NCAA college football game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the South Carolina Gamecocks in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, October 9, 2021.Utvsc1007
Tennessee defensive lineman Matthew Butler (94) celebrating after a defensive stop during the NCAA college football game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the South Carolina Gamecocks in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, October 9, 2021.Utvsc1007 /

3. Defense is getting more aggressive.

Last week, amidst all the talk surrounding Tennessee football’s offense scoring 62 points, not enough credit was given to the defense for holding the Missouri Tigers to just 17 points, as one touchdown was off of a kickoff return. The same thing applied this week against South Carolina, as the Vols defense remained aggressive.

Rocky Top held South Carolina to 370 yards of total offense, and when you take into account how many plays Josh Heupel makes sure are run in a game, that’s actually pretty impressive. Now, to be fair, UT was facing a much weaker offense, but holding USC to those few yards isn’t the only story on the day.

Coming away with big plays is the story of the defense in this game. South Carolina allowed under two and a half sacks a game before Saturday. However, the Vols managed to come away with four sacks, and they had another 10 tackles for a loss.

Given the tempo of Heupel’s offense, the defense’s best chance at success has always been big plays, and sacks and tackles for a loss are the way to do that. Forcing turnovers is also a key factor on that front, and that deserves a slide of its own.

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