11/2/12 Tennessee Game
Beating Tennessee never gets old, does it? It seems like every year we have another reason to really want to beat the Vols senseless. For instance, this year they took our linebackers coach and made them their defensive coordinator, and they also start a defensive end that transferred from Alabama, and likes to trash talk on Twitter about his former school. However, I think in the minds of Bama fans, the blood will always get boiling when we remember the sting operation that UT coach Phil Fulmer and the Tennessee boosters ran on us in the early 2000s that resulted in some of the worst penalties the NCAA has ever delivered. Well, now we’re back, and for the last 6 years (including this game), we have been delivering our own unique brand of justice.
We came into this game as heavy favorites, and we lived up to those expectations by dominating the Vols from start to finish. AJ started the scoring by hitting a wide open Amari Cooper for a 23 yard TD pass. The funny thing about that play is that Amari wasn’t even the most open player on that play. Seriously, go back and watch Christion Jones; he was running a slant to the left corner of the end zone, and he was left all alone. Don’t get me wrong; I’m certainly not criticizing AJ because there is no reason to go to your later reads if your first read is wide open. I’m just commenting on how bad the UT secondary was on that play. Reminds me of Bama on 4th and 19 (you know what I’m talking about!).
Tennessee fought pretty hard for awhile, and even though we took a 23-10 lead into halftime, it could have been closer had Justin Hunter caught that perfectly thrown bomb right before the half. We went back and forth for awhile, but when AJ hit Amari (who had a phenomenal game) for that 42-yard TD pass about halfway through the 3rd quarter, the score was 30-10, and the game was basically over. We added a couple of 4th quarter TDs with a long TD pass to Kenny Bell (another blown coverage by UT), and a spectacular 43-yard run around the right end by TJ Yeldon, making the final score 44-13. It should be noted that Tennessee did kick a late FG (for some reason) against our 2nd team defense.
This game was supposed to be the first real challenge for our defense. Tyler Bray is a future NFL QB, and his receivers are outstanding, including one All-American. They did make some big plays, but they never really got into a rhythm against our defense. We played very solid throughout the game, and even though we didn’t completely terrorize the QB, we did make two nice interceptions, including a diving catch by our Mike linebacker CJ Mosley. So even though the stats might not bear it out, I thought it was among the best defensive performances I’ve seen by our team this year. And it couldn’t come at a better time, because our schedule is about to get much tougher, including consecutive games against Mississippi State (ranked number 11), LSU, and Texas A&M. All of these games will be challenges, but of course the LSU matchup looms large even as we’re about to face the BCS Number 11 team. Making it through this 4-game gauntlet will be extremely challenging, but I didn’t see anything on Saturday night that makes me think we can’t do it. However, actually doing it is another matter all together!
That’s it for now. As always, feel free to send me any questions or comments.
Kenny