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Tennessee football report card: Grading the Vols on their 2021 season

By Caleb Calhoun

Tennessee wide receiver Cedric Tillman (4) gets his hands on the ball but it falls incomplete in the NCAA college football game between the Tennesse Volunteers and Vanderbilt Commodores in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, November 27, 2021.Kns Tennessee Vanderbilt Football
Tennessee wide receiver Cedric Tillman (4) gets his hands on the ball but it falls incomplete in the NCAA college football game between the Tennesse Volunteers and Vanderbilt Commodores in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, November 27, 2021.Kns Tennessee Vanderbilt Football /
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Tennessee Head Coach Josh Heupel during an SEC football game between Tennessee and Georgia at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Nov. 13, 2021.Kns Tennessee Georgia Football
Tennessee Head Coach Josh Heupel during an SEC football game between Tennessee and Georgia at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Nov. 13, 2021.Kns Tennessee Georgia Football /

Coaching grades

Offensive play-calling: A-

It’s hard not to give this an A grade given how elite the offense was all year. However, Josh Heupel and Alex Golesh weren’t flawless in their play-calls with Tennessee football. They could have been better in goal-line situations throughout the year. For the most part, though, they hit their goal, which was to score fast and set the tempo.

Defensive play-calling: B+

Back to the point we made on defense, Tim Banks’ resume can’t be about the yards and points he allowed. It has to be about efficiency, and for the most part, he called pretty good games. Issues at linebacker and containment by the safeties made it hard to execute lots of those plays, but Banks was underrated in the job he did.

Overall head coaching grade: A-

Heupel had some mistakes in play-calling, and he made the decision to start Joe Milton III over Hendon Hooker at the beginning of the season. Those two things are what keep this grade from being an A or even an A+.

Next. Team awards for Vols' 2021 season. dark

Still, with everything working against Tennessee football, Heupel got the Vols to wildly exceed expectations by reaching a bowl game and cementing a winning record in the regular season. As a result, there’s no way anybody can say he doesn’t deserve something in the A range.

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