It’s hard to criticize anybody too harshly after beating the Alabama Crimson Tide. Tennessee football was responsible for winning what was easily the best game of the season so far, and they also beat one of the three most talented teams in the nation in the process. You’d obviously need a near-perfect game for that.
Well, the Vols didn’t have a perfect game, but certain units came pretty darn close. Some units had help from certain players who made the whole group come close toward perfection. As we get set to break down how each position group performed, we’ll name those players as well.
A safe assumption is that one side of the ball had way better grades than the other. As usual, we’ll have two pages for offense and then slides for defense, special teams and coaching, grading each unit of all of those aspects of the game. Here is our report card for Tennessee football in the Vols’ 52-49 win against Alabama.
These are the Tennessee football Volunteers’ grades in their victory over the Crimson Tide.
Offensive grades part I
Quarterback: A
Hendon Hooker threw an interception and was part of a fumbled exchange. That is the only reason he didn’t earn an A+. What more can you say about completing 70 percent of your passes, averaging 12.8 yards per attempt and throwing for five touchdowns? Oh, he also ran it 14 times for 56 yards on the day.
Once again, Hooker’s pocket presence was incredible, as he was great at avoiding sacks, and in this game he was mostly accurate. That 15-second drive at the end was gold. Joe Milton III also threw a pass in this one, but it was a hail mary at the end of the first half.
Running back: B+
That fumbled exchange seemed to be more on Jabari Small than Hooker. Small and Jaylen Wright did combine for 150 total yards from scrimmage, with Small carrying it 12 times for 53 yards and a touchdown and Wright carrying it 12 times for 71 yards. They made sure Tennessee football’s running game was elite, but it wasn’t spectacular enough for A-range given the fumble.