For the first five minutes of Saturday’s game at Vanderbilt, it was anything but smooth sailing for Tennessee. However, the Volunteers righted the ship in a big way.
After Vanderbilt jumped out to a 14-0 lead, No. 8 Tennessee reeled off 29 straight points in the second and third quarters to roll to a 36-23 victory in Nashville.
“Just proud of our football team,” Tennessee Head Coach Josh Heupel said. “All week, we talked about finishing the regular season the right way and got to be a man to do that. They prepared the right way and practiced the right way. We sure didn’t start the right way, but competitive composure and belief in the guys around you. Just kept fighting and flipped the game there in the second quarter and early third.”
With the win, Tennessee finished the regular season with a 10-2 mark and all but officially locked in a spot for the College Football Playoffs.
The bracket for the playoffs is set to be announced on Sunday, Dec. 8.
Vanderbilt jumped out early as Junior Sherrill took the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown. After a Tennessee fumble a couple of plays later, Sedrick Alexander scored on a four-yard run to give the Commodores a 14-0 lead five minutes into the game.
“Not exactly the way you would design it,” Heupel said of the early 14-0 Vanderbilt lead.
The Volunteers, however, answered with a needed score as Dont’e Thornton caught a 28-yard pass from Nico Iamaleava for a touchdown to cap off a quick five-play drive.
Vanderbilt’s Brock Taylor added a 32-yard field goal as the Commodores took a 17-7 lead into the second quarter.
Tennessee struck first in the second as Max Gilbert hit a 50-yard field goal that bounced off the upright.
After the Tennessee defense forced a Vandy punt, two plays later Thornton caught a long pass from Iamaleava that covered 86 yards to tie the game.
In a two-minute drill to close the half, Tennessee covered 96 yards in 10 plays and scored with 22 seconds left in the second as Miles Kitselman caught an 18-yard pass in the endzone to send Tennessee to the locker room with a 24-17 advantage.
“I think this team as a whole – one of its greatest strengths is its competitive makeup and the resiliency, the ability to just go play the next snap,” Heupel said. “It’s something that we talk about and we try to emulate throughout the year – not just during the season – but it’s a mature group of competitors, and certainly our veterans are older leaders operate that way. Our young guys have that competitive mindset, too. It’s one of the strengths of this football team. It’s really special.”
In the second half, Mike Matthews scored on a 14-yard pass from Iamaleava and Tyre West recorded a safety as the Vols pushed the lead to 33-17 after three complete.
From there, Tennessee held the Commodores at bay to secure the win.
“Finishing the way that we needed to and that we wanted to always is sweet,” Heupel said. “These guys earned the right for this to be a big game. They went out, they took it. Got to take it as a competitor when you’re in the arena. It was a lot of fun inside of that locker room, absolutely, and can’t wait to get back and see the rest of our guys.”
Iamaleava went 18-of-26 passing for 257 yards and four touchdowns, while also adding 42 yards on the ground.
Dylan Sampson continued his record-breaking season as the junior set the new program record for rushing yards in the season. Sampson finished with 178 yards on 25 carries to finish the regular season with 1,485 yards – beating a program record previously held by Travis Stephens of 1,464 yards.
Thornton had 118 yards on three catches, while Chris Brazzell had 54 yards on five catches.
The Volunteers now wait to find out its final College Football Playoff ranking and matchup on Sunday, Dec. 8.
“It’s the next step for us as a program, and when I say that, you look at what we’ve been able to do since I’ve been here – especially the last three years including this one,” Heupel said. “There’s an expectation from our staff and our players. It was a goal, but there was an expectation to be in this and that comes from the work that everybody’s put in and who we have in the building. Proud of these guys for executing and putting us in the position to be there. Now the next season starts – what are we going to do with it?”
