Tennessee Vols: Why Josh Heupel actually feels better about his team after giving up long fourth down conversion
The Tennessee Vols' offense was spectacular on Saturday night against the Kentucky Wildcats. Tennessee put up 461 yards of total offense in the 45-42 win, despite possessing the ball for only 13:52. But while the Vols' offense was the story of the game, it was the defense that sealed the win for Tennessee. Late in […]
The Tennessee Vols' offense was spectacular on Saturday night against the Kentucky Wildcats.
Tennessee put up 461 yards of total offense in the 45-42 win, despite possessing the ball for only 13:52.
But while the Vols' offense was the story of the game, it was the defense that sealed the win for Tennessee.
Late in the fourth quarter, Kentucky had a chance to either tie the game or take the lead.
With 1:05 remaining in the game, the Wildcats were faced with a 4th-and-24 situation.
Kentucky miraculously picked up the first down, thanks to a wheel route that caught Tennessee's defense off guard.
That's obviously something that can't happen. The Vols have to come up with a stop in that situation.
You might expect Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel to be furious with the defense in that situation. But surprisingly, Heupel actually feels better about his team after giving up that long fourth-down conversion.
Heupel understands that no football team plays perfect at all times. He knows that opposing teams sometimes just make big plays.
What made Heupel happy is how Tennessee responded in that situation. Kentucky had all the momentum after converting on 4th-and-24. It would've been easy for the Vols' defense to lose its composure in that moment.
Instead, the UT defense stopped the Wildcats on the next four plays to preserve the win.
And that's what excited Heupel after the game.
"I love the reset of this sequence, right, you just gave up a 4th-and-24…our players were able to reset, come up with a stop on first, second, third, and fourth down and get off the field," said Heupel on the "The Josh Heupel Show" after the game.
Tennessee was hit with some adversity late in the game. Things didn't go their way. But they responded exactly the way Heupel wants them to respond — they kept their composure and found a way to get a win on the road against a ranked opponent.
We learned a lot about the Vols on Saturday night. We learned this team doesn't quit when things go south. We learned that this team knows how to grind out a win in a tough situation.
And we learned that Tennessee football is well on its way to being relevant again.
Featured image via Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
