Vols’ team leader drops important quote after loss to Illinois that all Tennessee fans need to hear

The Tennessee Vols fell 30-28 to the Illinois Fighting Illini in the Music City Bowl on Tuesday in Nashville.

Zach Ragan — Tennessee Volunteers News Writer
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The Tennessee Vols’ 2025 season came to a disappointing close on Tuesday evening in Nashville.

Tennessee lost 30-28 to Illinois in the Music City Bowl after the Fighting Illini made a field goal as time expired.

The Vols’ five losses in 2025 all featured game-changing moments that altered the way those games were played.

There was the missed field goal that would’ve won the game against Georgia, the pick-six in the loss to Alabama, the scoop-n-score in the first half of the loss to Oklahoma, a questionable roughing the passer call just before halftime against Vanderbilt, and a scoop-n-score in the bowl game loss to Illinois.

Tennessee may have gone 8-5 in 2025, but the Vols were a better team than their record indicated.

Vols running back DeSean Bishop drops important quote after loss to Illinois

Vols redshirt sophomore running back DeSean Bishop was quick to point out after the loss to Illinois that Tennessee was just a couple of plays away from possibly being undefeated in 2025.

“I just feel like it’s kind of just a repeat of us just beating ourselves,” said Bishop. “Not taking anything away from Illinois, but [if] you look at a lot of these games that we played, we’re really just a couple plays away from being honestly undefeated, like I mentioned earlier in the season.

“I’m very excited to get after it — after however many days we’re off — and get back into the flow of football again. But there’s a lot you can learn from this [loss]. We’re not going to take this loss lightly. I know it’s not going to carry over to next year. But it’ll definitely be a reminder of just — you don’t want this outcome again. Because, I mean, I keep saying to myself that we’re experiencing a lot of these outcomes, and there’s got to be something different next year.”

Tennessee definitely has some areas where it needs to improve. But this program isn’t that far away. The Vols need to add some defensive talent to the roster and figure out their quarterback situation for the 2026 season. But otherwise, the biggest objective for Tennessee this offseason needs to be mastering the little details — because that’s ultimately what cost the Vols in 2025.

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