Tennessee wide receiver Mike Matthews was called for an illegal blindside block in the fourth quarter of the Vols’ win over Alabama this past weekend.

The penalty wiped off a big gain by Volunteers running back DeSean Bishop.

Big gain by DeSean Bishop is called back following a blindside block by Mike Matthews. pic.twitter.com/Q2CqLmMPEc

— Tri-Star Vols (@TriStar_Vols) October 17, 2026

Matthews made up for the penalty on the next play by picking up 18 yards on a screen pass.

Big run by Mike Matthews pic.twitter.com/d483p64nVh

— gmannVOLS (@gmannVOLS) October 17, 2026

While the penalty didn’t end up hurting Tennessee, it’s still something that can’t happen in a close game.

I’ve seen some fans comment that they thought the block shouldn’t have been a penalty, but ultimately it’s something that’s going to be consistently called by officials in today’s college football (Alabama was called for an illegal blindside block earlier in the game against Tennessee).

That’s why Vols head coach Josh Heupel agrees that it’s something that can’t happen.

“You can’t do it,” said Heupel. “When I was playing, that was allowed…but no, you can’t do it. I love the physicality that Mike played with throughout the course of the football game. We showed that play today to our team. We’ve got to play smarter. I love the mentality, attitude, and toughness that he demonstrates on every play. But we’ve got to play smarter as a football team.”

Most Tennessee fans love the aggression and physicality that Matthews plays with — it’s part of what makes him an elite player. But he just has to understand in the future that officials are looking for blindside blocks, and they’re going to throw the flag on anything close. And the last thing Matthews wants is to be the reason that Tennessee ends up behind the sticks at a critical point in the game.