Tennessee gets a breather this week, and Josh Heupel is using the open date to do exactly what every coach wants in late October: clean up, heal up and reset before the next big swing.
Speaking Wednesday on the SEC coaches’ teleconference, Heupel said the Vols spent Tuesday reviewing the 27-24 loss at South Carolina, a game decided when Malik Orsan hit a 48-yard field goal as time expired. Tennessee has its lone open date of the season after the defeat, and Heupel said the extra time is a chance to “get healthier - as healthy as you can [be] at this point in the season” while also focusing on “the things that we control and how we got to get better and grow here next couple of days on the practice field.”
The 16th-ranked Vols are 6-2 and will return Nov. 7 against No. 9 Kentucky, a 6:15 p.m. Eastern kickoff at Neyland Stadium on ESPN.
Heupel also addressed senior running back DeSean Bishop’s status after Bishop briefly left Saturday’s game because of an injury. Asked about the lefty quarterback dynamic, Heupel said, “Being a lefty myself, I don't know that there's intrinsic advantage of it. I think some of the things that you do offensively as a play-caller, coordinator, whatever it might be, you're flipping some of those things, just to play to the strength of his arm.”
He added that defenses may attack things differently depending on the quarterback’s handedness, and noted that both tackle spots matter. Still, he said the blind spot becomes a bigger issue if a quarterback doesn’t handle the pocket well.
On Bishop, Heupel said, “Nah. We feel like he'll be in a good spot for next week.
He got some work today. We limited him some today.
Part of that was the ankle, but part of that's just the volume that he's gotten in the early part of the conference play, too.”
Heupel also pointed to roster turnover as the biggest challenge in the modern college game. In his view, the transfer portal and NIL have made team cohesion harder to manage over the course of a season.
“I think the biggest change in college sports, but college football, and the hardest thing that you encounter is just the turnover on your roster,” he said. “With the transfer portal, NIL, all of those things, I think that's the biggest thing that has changed in the sport.”
He said the daily job now is keeping the group locked in and moving together from week to week, and even day to day, so the team is ready on game day.
Heupel also revisited the challenge of facing Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp’s defense. He described Muschamp’s teams as aggressive, with pressures and plenty of match coverage, and said Tennessee knew the talent and scheme would make for a major test, especially in Faizon’s first start.
“I have a ton of respect for Will and the job that he's done everywhere that he's been,” Heupel said.
He closed by pointing to the physical reality of SEC play and why injuries can pile up across the league. He cited the speed, power and athleticism teams face every week, along with the contact that comes with it.
“I think this league, the speed, the power, the athleticism that you're facing, the type of contact that you get play in, play out every week inside of this league. Yes, we're going to nine [conference games]. We're not at nine yet, but I think it's just the quality of the athletes, the power of the athletes and the type of contact that you encounter because of that every play inside of this league,” Heupel said.
“The margins inside of this league - and I'm just talking about the quality of the players - has just continued to increase across the board, so I think, for all of those reasons, that's why you're seeing that.”
In Other News...
Lady Vols Showed Off A Depth Tennessee Fans Will Notice Fast
The only exhibition game on Tennessees schedule offered an early look at how many different ways this Lady Vols roster can beat you, and Florida A&M had no answer for it. Tennessee rolled to a 132-63 win while forcing 37 turnovers and turning those takeaways into 45 points, the kind of pressure-to-points formula that can make a deep team even harder to handle once the games start to count.
Eight players finished in double figures, a sign that the scoring load could be spread around in a way Tennessee fans are likely to appreciate fast. White filled the box score with 16 points, seven assists, six rebounds and four steals, Minus added 12 points and seven rebounds, Smikle led the way with 19 points, and Janneh controlled the glass with 13 rebounds, giving the Lady Vols a glimpse of the balance they can lean on this season. [Read more 🡒]
DeSean Bishop Update Matters For Tennessees Stretch Run
DeSean Bishops day at South Carolina ended early, but Tennessee got a reassuring sign afterward. Josh Heupel said the running back is expected to be in good condition for the upcoming week, which matters as the Volunteers head into the stretch run with Bishop playing a bigger and bigger role in the offense.
Bishop has been pushing toward 1,000 rushing yards this season, and his presence gives Tennessee another reliable option as the games get tighter. With one year of eligibility still left after this season, keeping him available now and down the stretch looms as an important piece of the bigger picture for the Volunteers. [Read more 🡒]
Vols Suddenly Have A Real Shot At Key 2027 DB Target
Preston Glascos recruitment is moving into the home stretch, and Tennessee has positioned itself squarely in the mix for one of the more intriguing 2027 defensive backs in the region. The Grayson High School cornerback from Georgia is expected to make his college choice soon, and his list has been trimmed to Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee after a process that has already brought multiple scholarship offers and steady attention from major programs.
For the Vols, the encouraging part is that Glasco has remained in regular contact with the coaching staff and came away from a recent visit with Tennessee firmly in the conversation. That kind of late momentum matters in a battle like this, especially when the competition includes two heavyweight SEC neighbors, and it leaves Tennessee with a real opening as his decision approaches. [Read more 🡒]