Tennessee Vols give fans 2 reasons to be very excited about the 2022 season in thrilling win over Pittsburgh

It wasn't pretty, but the Tennessee Vols are leaving Pennsylvania with a 2-0 record after beating Pittsburgh 34-27 in overtime. The Vols made more than their fair share of mistakes on Saturday evening, including a blocked punt and a muffed punt that gave Pittsburgh excellent field position. Tennessee also dropped some easy passes and quarterback […]

Zach Ragan — Tennessee Volunteers News Writer
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It wasn't pretty, but the Tennessee Vols are leaving Pennsylvania with a 2-0 record after beating Pittsburgh 34-27 in overtime.

The Vols made more than their fair share of mistakes on Saturday evening, including a blocked punt and a muffed punt that gave Pittsburgh excellent field position. Tennessee also dropped some easy passes and quarterback Hendon Hooker missed a couple of open receivers.

But the Vols found a way to win — mostly thanks to the defense, which started out shaky.

Pittsburgh's first two drives of the day resulted in 10 easy points. When the Vols were down 10-0 early, it felt like it was going to be a long day for Tennessee fans.

UT, however, eventually settled in and took a 24-17 lead into halftime.

Vols
Tennessee running back Jaylen Wright (20) is tackled by Pittsburgh linebacker Brandon George (30) during the first half of a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and Pittsburgh Panthers in Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022.Tennpitt0910 00869

The Vols were able to put the game away in overtime thanks to a 28-yard touchdown pass from Hooker to Cedric Tillman. That touchdown pass was followed by an impressive stop from Tennessee's defense that sealed the win.

This game gave Vols fans two reasons to be extremely excited about the rest of the season.

  • Tennessee made a lot of mistakes and still beat the No. 17 team in the nation on the road.
  • The Vols' offense wasn't crisp for much of the night (despite the big nights from Tillman and Jalin Hyatt). The defense was able to step up and come up with several critical stops to help secure the win.

Tennessee has a lot to work on moving forward. But this is a game that previous UT teams don't win. In fact, there are some years where this game would've been a blowout.

This season is all about the Vols showing that they're ready to take a big step forward under Heupel. The win against Pittsburgh wasn't the prettiest win we've seen from the Vols, but any win over a ranked opponent on the road is a great win.

We know this Vols offense can play much better. And they'll play better than what we saw tonight.

The future is truly bright on Rocky Top.

Featured image via Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

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