Tennessee got things clicking late, but it was too late.
The Volunteers tied to rally late but dropped a 33-27 decision to Oklahoma on Saturday night in SEC play.
“Obviously, extremely disappointed with the outcome,” Tennessee Head Coach Josh Heupel said. “As you know, everyone in the program is extremely disappointed. Fans were awesome tonight, as always, I want to thank them. You know, first half I thought defensively we played extremely well. Offensively, moved the football, don’t get points in the red zone, turned the ball over, give them 16 points in the first half. Just can’t win that way. They’re a good football team and then at the end just didn’t have enough to get over the hump. So, give credit to them and we got to play smarter to win a game like that.”
Joey Aguilar finished 29 of 45 for 393 yards and three touchdowns, directing five balls to Braylon Staley for 75 yards and two scores and three to Mike Matthews for 76 and a TD.
“Well, we didn’t handle it well enough,” Heupel said of facing Oklahoma’s defense. “With turnovers, uncharacteristic, and they turned into points, and that’s a double whammy right there. Give credit to them, there are some things that we did really well. I didn’t think we operated a couple of possessions in the red zone the way you need to, and then the turnovers. You give them 16 points in the first half, and their kicker did a really nice job, hits three long ones. (We) just didn’t execute.”
Defensively, Edrees Farooq paced the Vols with a career-high 10 tackles and two forced fumbles, and Edwin Spillman added nine stops along with an interception and pass break-up.
UT jumped on top on the game’s opening possession, getting a five-yard pass from quarterback Aguilar to Staley in the back of the end zone to grab a 7-0 lead with just 3:43 gone.
The Vols looked to be moving into position for more points on their second drive when the Sooners’ R. Mason Thomas returned a strip-sack fumble 71 yards to even the score at seven with 8:01 left in the first.
Gilbert’s 45-yard field goal pushed the Big Orange back in front, 10-7, with 3:30 remaining in the first frame. Kicks of 55, 51 and 40 yards by Tate Sandell in the second stanza, though, sent the Sooners into the locker room at the half with a 16-10 lead despite the Vols out-producing the visitors offensively, 255-99.
After forcing OU to punt on its opening possession of the second half, Tennessee surged in front 17-16 when Staley hauled in a short pass from Aguilar and raced 54 yards down the right sideline to the checkerboard. The Vol defense preserved the lead on the next possession with the Sooners driving into the red zone.
Farooq forced a Xavier Robinson fumble and recovered at the 10 yard-line to end the threat. OU, though, forced UT to punt, and Robinson redeemed himself with a four-yard run that boosted his team back in front, 23-17, with 2:03 left in the third.
A 55-yarder off the left foot of Sandell made it a two-possession game, 26-17, with 11:05 remaining. Later, with OU trying to put the game away, an Spillman interception of Sooners quarterback John Mateer and a return to the UT 45 gave Tennessee hope with 4:18 to go.
Six plays later, Aguilar found wide receiver Matthews in the end zone for a 15-yard score to pull the Vols within two, 26-24, with 1:56 to go. Sandell’s two 55-yarders tied a Neyland Stadium record.
Tennessee attempted an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff, but Oklahoma recovered. The Sooners tacked on a one-yard Mateer keeper to extend the margin to nine again, 33-24. A 48-yard field goal by Gilbert trimmed the deficit to six, 33-27, with 47 ticks on the clock, and that’s how the game would end.
