NEED TO KNOW
Holding Serve at Home
With a win on Saturday, Tennessee would complete its first undefeated season at home since it went 7-0 at Neyland Stadium back in 2007. The Vols are 6-0 on Rocky Top this season, having outscored their opponents 321-128 in those games. The Big Orange have won eight in a row inside Neyland dating back to last season, representing their longest home winning streak since posting nine straight victories from 2006-08.
Defense Continuing to Improve
Despite last weekend's road loss to top-ranked Georgia, UT's defense put forth another solid effort by holding the Bulldogs' offense well under their season averages for points, total yards, rushing yards and passing yards while also forcing two turnovers. UT has been aggressive and opportunistic under defensive coordinator Tim Banks this season, leading the SEC in turnovers forced (18), turnover margin (0.89) and fumbles recovered (nine). For comparison, UT had just 13 takeaways in 13 games last season.
Owning the Middle Quarters
A big emphasis of Tennessee's offseason was second-quarter improvement. The Vols were outscored 143-109 in the second stanza in 2021. However, this season, UT is dominating opponents in the second quarter, outscoring them by a 144-51 margin. The Vols are second in the nation in second-quarter scoring average (16.0 ppg) and rank No. 1 in the country in second-quarter scoring differential (+10.33). UT has also been productive in the third quarter, outscoring opponents, 78-42.
Scoring at a Historic Rate
Tennessee's 408 points entering Saturday's contest are its most through nine games in program history and the most by an SEC team in that span since 2019 LSU scored 433 in their first nine. The Vols are on pace to set the school record for scoring in a single season as they are currently averaging 45.3 points per game, which ranks second in the FBS just behind Ohio State's 45.8 points per game.
