Tennessee football took care of business on homecoming, debuting its 2025 version of the Smokey Grey jerseys with a nod to the service members and women of the Volunteer State.
Along with alums back on campus, a uniform debut, and the Vols' Salute to Service game, Tennessee handled the Aggies 42-9, with the Vols' defense dominating and making key stops to allow the Vols to start a little slow offensively but eventually pull away.
A Volunteer victory. pic.twitter.com/QzfX1dfVds
— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) November 16, 2025
A part of the struggles to find the end zone in the first half is due to a couple of turnovers. Two Joey Aguilar interceptions kept the score closer than many would have liked going into halftime.
If Tennessee can clean up the turnover issues in the final two weeks of the season, the Vols' offense won't have many issues finding the end zone. But as we reach the final couple of weeks in the regular season, Tennessee has become its biggest enemy on offense.
Defensively, though, the Vols were dominant. New Mexico State eventually found the end zone once in the fourth quarter, but other than that, Tennessee's defense made several clutch stops to shut down the Aggies' offense.
Freshmen Ty Redmond and Jadon Perlotte also made a big impact on the game, offering a bright spot on that side of the ball. Redmond could be a key figure in Tennessee's secondary in 2026 and beyond, so it is great seeing him make an impact in his freshman season.
Perlotte has made a few plays on the season, including recording at least one tackle in five of Tennessee's ten games so far this season. Redmond and Perlotte recorded five tackles each in tonight's win.
The Vols are now 7-3 and have a couple of big conference games remaining on the schedule to wrap up their season. A trip to Florida and a season finale date with in-state rival Vanderbilt can make or break the Tennessee season.
Tennessee is out of the College Football Playoff picture, but the final two weeks of the year will likely be the difference between a 9-3 and 7-5 season.
While Tennessee's offense didn't score as much as what Tennessee fans have become accustomed to in the Josh Heupel era, the Vols' offense still had 413 total yards, including 204 passing yards from Joey Aguilar, and DeSean Bishop led the Vols' rushing efforts with 80 yards on the night.