Tennessee heads to South Carolina on Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff on ESPN, and the matchup comes with a few numbers that help frame what the Vols have done this season and what could be in front of them in Columbia.
Start with the pass rush. Tennessee has piled up 30 sacks this year, the most in the SEC and the most in the country.
And this hasn’t just been built on early-season work before league play. In four conference games, the Vols have already produced 17 sacks.
Tyree Weathersby has been the headliner there with 6.5 sacks after getting multiple against Alabama. Xavier Gilliam follows with five, while Mariyon Dye has four.
The list doesn’t stop there, either. Jeremiah Telander, Amare Campbell, Arion Carter, Edwin Spillman, Dejuan Lane, Jordan Norman, Hezekiah Harris and Isaiah Campbell have all recorded at least one sack.
Tennessee also has a strong road history in this series. The most recent trip to Columbia in 2022 ended badly, but the bigger picture at Williams-Brice Stadium is much better for the Vols. Tennessee owns a 10-8-2 record in Columbia, including a vacated win by the NCAA in 2020.
On the full series ledger, Tennessee is 29-11-2 against South Carolina on the field, a .725 win percentage that stands out no matter how you slice it.
Then there’s DeSean Bishop, who could reach another milestone if Saturday goes his way. After breaking out for more than 1,000 rushing yards last season over 13 games, he now has a chance to get there in only eight games this year.
Bishop needs 163 more rushing yards to hit 1,000 again. He’s averaging 119.6 yards per game and has gone for more than 130 yards four times already. If he gets there, he would become only the second Tennessee player ever to post multiple 1,000-yard seasons in a career, joining Johnnie Jones, who reached the mark in 1983 with 1,116 yards and again in 1984 with 1,290.
In Other News...
Tennessee Just Lost Another Key Piece Up Front
Tennessees offensive line had been trending in the right direction before Donovan Haslam went down in the first half against South Carolina, giving the unit a little more stability after recent games with fewer sacks allowed. Haslam had settled in at right guard, and his presence helped the Volunteers keep building around an up-front group that had started to look more settled.
His upper-body injury forced another in-game shuffle, with Shamurad Umarov stepping in as Tennessee had to adjust on the fly. For a line that had finally found some traction, losing a key interior piece in the middle of a game is the kind of setback that can quickly change the feel of the entire offense. [Read more 🡒]
Tennessee Fans Will Not Like One Detail About This South Carolina Game
Tennessee heads into its trip to South Carolina with a little extra baggage from the recent history between these teams. The Volunteers have not forgotten the 2022 loss in Columbia, and the setup for this one already has a familiar edge to it, with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN and the matchup carrying more weight than a standard SEC date on the calendar.
The line has only added to the frustration for Tennessee fans, since South Carolina is favored by 2.5 points despite the Vols being ranked higher. There is also a layer of unease attached to the officiating after referee David Smith, a former Alabama quarterback, was on the crew for that 2022 game in Columbia, which makes this weekends meeting feel like more than just another road test. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Matthews Gave Tennessee The Jolt It Desperately Needed
A change of pace from the usual script gave Tennessee exactly the spark it needed in the first half against South Carolina. Mike Matthews, already an important part of the passing game as a junior wide receiver, took a Wildcat snap and turned it into a rushing touchdown, helping the Volunteers grab their first lead of the afternoon by halftime.
Matthews had already shown this season that he can finish drives as a receiver, with three touchdown catches to his name, but this one added a different layer to his value. For a Tennessee offense that needed a jolt, the play was a reminder that Matthews can impact the game in more than one way, and that kind of versatility can matter as the Vols try to steady themselves in a tight spot. [Read more 🡒]