Something pretty impressive about Tennessee is flying under the radar this week ahead of matchup against South Carolina
It’s something that’s not getting talked about quite enough, and it shows the progress that Tennessee has made under head coach Josh Heupel in an important area.
There’s something pretty impressive about Tennessee that’s flying under the radar this week ahead of the Vols’ game against South Carolina.
Earlier this week, LSU head coach Lane Kiffin went on a tangent about the nine-game conference schedule and the impact it’s having on the health of players.
There’s certainly some truth to Kiffin’s comments. An extra SEC game is tougher on players than a game against an FCS opponent (though it’s important to point out the entire league still has half the SEC schedule left to play, so teams aren’t feeling the effect of the extra conference game just yet).
Teams are beat up across the league — as evidenced by this week’s SEC availability reports.
One of the big narratives surrounding Tennessee’s matchup against South Carolina is that the Vols are at a disadvantage because their bye week is next weekend, while the Gamecocks are coming off their bye.
In theory, the Vols should be pretty beat up this week after playing Alabama last Saturday (which was the Vols’ fourth straight SEC game).
But Tennessee is actually fairly healthy. The Vols have reported no new injuries for this week’s game, and Tennessee doesn’t have any players listed as questionable.
“Tennessee is the only team in the conference who doesn’t have anybody listed on their report who is unknown going into this game,” said VolQuest’s Brent Hubbs on 104.5 The Zone’s Ramon and Will on Friday. “Everybody that’s out are the long-term injuries that are significant structural injuries that took place weeks ago. (Offensive lineman) Wendell Moe was the last one, and that took place in the Texas game. So I think it’s a credit to (UT strength coach) Derek Owings. I think it’s a credit to the growing toughness and mentality of this team.”
Tennessee’s toughness was questioned last season.
And it wasn’t just the physical toughness — it was the mental toughness, too.
“The thing last year was just the mental part of it,” said Vols safety Edrees Farooq in August (Farooq is out for the year after suffering a freak knee injury in fall camp). “Just being out there and being able to play when things get tough — when things get hard on us. Like when we get tired or anything.
“We didn’t feel down, we just didn’t have that mentality of finishing through games — all the way through. And I feel like this year, we have built that mentality of never giving up. And once the fourth quarter comes, we’ll be able to finish through the whole game.”
There’s no doubt that Tennessee is a tougher team this season, and it’s showing up on paper and on Saturdays.
