The Tennessee Vols are legit and the scary thing is that they can play even better than they did against NC State
The Tennessee Vols made a statement on Saturday night in Charlotte against the NC State Wolfpack, Tennessee cruised to a 51-10 win against NC State to improve to 2-0 on the season. The Vols held NC State to just 143 yards of total offense, thanks in large part to a dominant showing by Tennessee's extremely […]
The Tennessee Vols made a statement on Saturday night in Charlotte against the NC State Wolfpack,
Tennessee cruised to a 51-10 win against NC State to improve to 2-0 on the season. The Vols held NC State to just 143 yards of total offense, thanks in large part to a dominant showing by Tennessee's extremely talented and deep defensive line.
It wasn't just the defensive line, however, that was responsible for shutting NC State's offense down. The linebacker play was impressive and the Vols' new-look secondary looked much improved from last season.
Offensively, the Vols were good enough. Redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava played well, but not perfect. He threw two interceptions (though his arm was hit on the second one) to go along with 211 passing yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 65 yards and a touchdown.
NC State did a nice job of taking away the splash plays from Tennessee's offense, which forced the Vols to lean on the run game and underneath passes. Tennessee's offense still put plenty of points on the board, but as Iamaleava told ESPN's Holly Rowe after the game, there were a few sloppy moments for the offense. And that's to be expected early in the season.
The fact that Tennessee didn't play its best game offensively and still beat NC State by 41 points on a neutral field should scare the rest of the opponents on the Vols' schedule. Now, that's not a prediction that Tennessee is going undefeated the rest of the way — it's far too early in the season to even think about that. But it's obvious that Tennessee is a playoff-caliber team. And they have the depth to make a legit title run.
Combined the talent and depth with the Vols' relentless competitive nature and it's easy to see how 2024 has the potential to be an unforgettable season for Tennessee.
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