On Saturday night, near the end of the Tennessee Vols' 29-16 loss to the Florida Gators, ESPN play-by-play announcer Chris Fowler brought up a concerning stat about UT quarterback Joe Milton.

Fowler noted that Milton has never thrown a touchdown on the run as a college football player. 

"Our (ESPN) great stats and analytics department came up with this fact that Milton has never thrown a college touchdown pass, at Michigan or here (UT), while on the move," noted Fowler. "He's never completed a touchdown pass while on the move. He's not a particularly high percentage thrower when his feet are not planted." 

ESPN color commentator Kirk Herbstreit then suggested that Milton's troubles while throwing on the move is why Florida defensive coordinator Austin Armstrong brought extra pressure against Milton. 

On Monday afternoon, Vols head coach Josh Heupel was asked during his weekly media session about how important it is for a quarterback to be able to make off-platform plays in Tennessee's offense. 

"Extending plays is a big part of any offense in today's game," said Heupel. "Because of what you're facing up front, the pressure packages that you're inevitably going to see. The ability to move and make plays with your feet is a part of the game. That can be tucking it [and] running it, it can also be extending it and making plays outside of the pocket where you're throwing the football down the field."

Josh Heupel on the importance of QBs being able to make plays while on the move pic.twitter.com/U9H78LvjrI

— zach ragan (@zachTNT) September 18, 2023

Not having a quarterback who can consistently make plays while on the run is one of the biggest things missing from Tennessee's offense this season. 

A year ago, Hendon Hooker was able to make plays and extend drives numerous times because of his ability to operate at a high level while on the move. 

So far, Milton hasn't shown that same ability as a college quarterback. 

And considering he's a sixth-year senior, it seems unwise to expect that to drastically change this fall. 

That's not a knock against Milton by the way. It's just the reality of the situation. And it seems clear from Heupel's comments on Monday that in order for the Vols' offense to perform at a high level, the quarterback needs to able to make plays while on the move. 

So what's the answer for Tennessee? 

Unfortunately, I'm not sure there is a good one — though I'm sure there are going to be folks calling for true freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava to play over Milton. 

Iamaleava has only seen action in one game this season (limited snaps against Virginia), but he quickly showed great field and pocket awareness during his brief opportunity in the season opener. But that doesn't mean he's ready to play in Heupel's offense just yet. 

With Tennessee's offense seemingly out of sorts due to not everyone being on the same page, it's probably not a good idea to throw a true freshman into the fire and expect him to fix all of the issues (that would definitely not be fair to Nico, just like it's not fair to blame all of the offense's issues on Milton). 

The truth might just be that Milton will have to work to improve his mobility as best he can while Tennessee continues to push forward this season. And the offensive line will need to play better to limit the moments where Milton is forced to make a play on the run. It's not an ideal answer, but it might the best answer for Tennessee (at least for now). 

While there aren't many comforting answers for Tennessee right now, one thing is certain — if the Vols don't get better in those two areas (QB play on the move and the offensive line), it's hard to see the offense improving much this season. 

Florida fans are trying to create a false narrative about Tennessee HC Josh Heupel

Florida Gators fans are trying to create a false narrative about Tennessee Vols HC Josh Heupel

Featured image via Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK