Tennessee football report card in 38-33 win vs. Florida
Coaching grades
Related Story. Top five Vols performers in 38-33 win vs. Florida. light
Offensive play-calling: A+
None of the non-touchdown drives were Alex Golesh’s fault. Princeton Fant fumbled on a first down in the red zone on one. Hendon Hooker missed Jacob Warren wide open on another. Hooker was strip-sacked on one more, and Josh Heupel was then trying to run out the clock at the end. Outside of that, Tennessee football’s offense was perfect, so Golesh gets an A+.
Defensive play-calling: A-
Tim Banks had some issues when it came to situational defense and when to bring the pressure. However, most of the issues were on the play of the secondary, not his design, and he kept Anthony Richardson from winning the game with his legs. He also brought pressure at the perfect time, after Florida recovered that onside kick, which was genius and secured the win.
Overall head coaching grade: A-
You have to give Heupel credit for keeping his kids composed. The Vols fell behind early and could have folded, but they didn’t. They then nearly blew it at the end, but the defense held firm and made sure to secure the win, even as it came down to the wire. All of these things give him an A.
Five takeaways from Vols' 38-33 win vs. Florida. dark. Next
However, late-game play-calling pushes it to an A-. Heupel took his foot off the pedal after it was 38-21, particularly with that last offensive drive, and it could’ve cost Tennessee football in the end. You can’t make those mistakes as head coach, and that’s what keeps this grade from being an east A+.