Tennessee got a huge win against Texas A&M on the road, but now the Vols have two big unknowns before a big game against LSU
The Tennessee Volunteers improved to 8-2 with a big win over the Texas A&M Aggies on Saturday in College Station.
It wasn’t pretty — we’ve said that a lot this season — but Tennessee got the job done on Saturday in College Station.
The Vols outscored Texas A&M 13-0 in the fourth quarter to secure a 22-7 win.
Tennessee moves to 8-2 with the win. The Volunteers just need wins against LSU and Vanderbilt in the final two weeks of the regular season to lock up a spot in the College Football Playoff.
But while the Vols are on a good path right now, they exited the win over the Aggies with two big unknowns.
The first unknown is wide receiver Mike Matthews, who suffered a significant injury in the first half against Texas A&M.
There’s no official update on Matthews’ status for the LSU game next Saturday, but it doesn’t look good. Matthews was seen on crutches leaving the field in the first half.
Matthews is the Vols’ most dynamic playmaker — the passing game pretty much came to a halt without him in the second half.
There’s no way to replace Matthews (assuming he doesn’t play anymore this season), but young wide receivers like TK Keys and Radarious Jackson will need to step up the next two weeks and play key roles in the offense. The Vols are going to have to throw the ball at some point to extend their season.
The other big unknown is at quarterback.
George MacIntyre has made five straight starts for the Vols, but he was replaced by Faizon Brandon in the second half against Texas A&M. MacIntyre suffered a knee injury, which he briefly played through, before getting replaced.
MacIntyre completed 13-of-17 passes for 109 yards, but he also held the ball too long several times and missed some opportunities down the field.
Tennessee didn’t ask Brandon to throw the ball — his only pass attempt was a five-yard touchdown pass to tight end DaSaahn Brame — but he operated the offense well enough to get the Vols in field goal range and put points on the board.
If Matthews misses time, then Brandon probably becomes the most dynamic athlete on the field for Tennessee. He can help the Vols beat LSU next week. But should Tennessee give Brandon the start against the Tigers? Or do they stick with MacIntyre?
Much of that decision will depend on MacIntyre’s health. It will also depend on how both players practice this week.
Regardless of who starts, though, the Vols are going to have to find more success in the passing game to finish the season 10-2 and earn a spot in the playoff. LSU, after all, is going to present much more of an offensive challenge than Texas A&M did on Saturday.
