Tennessee heads into College Station with a clear theme hanging over its offense: there’s more to unlock in the passing game, and Josh Heupel knows it.
The No. 8 Volunteers have been good enough to keep moving up the national conversation, but Heupel made it plain this week that the aerial attack still has room to grow before Saturday afternoon’s Southeastern Conference matchup with Texas A&M at Kyle Field. That matters against an Aggies defense that has been stout on money downs, ranking 12th nationally in opponent third-down conversion percentage and first in red-zone scoring percentage.
“There’s a lot left out there for us,” Heupel said. “We missed some shots the other night. We’ve got to hit on some of those things and improve in that area.”
Tennessee is coming off a 34-6 win over No. 6 Kentucky, a game that was decided after halftime when the Vols scored the final 24 points. George MacIntyre handled the passing work efficiently, going 9 of 14 for 125 yards, while Faizon Brandon threw one pass - a 24-yard touchdown to Mike Matthews in the fourth quarter.
The Vols won with balance and takeaways. DeSean Bishop ran for 109 yards and two touchdowns, Tennessee finished with 389 yards of offense, and the defense forced three turnovers. Arion Carter was all over the field with 13 tackles and two sacks.
Even so, Heupel didn’t view the passing game as finished business. Tennessee has been efficient enough in terms of completion percentage and interceptions, but the bigger production numbers lag behind: the Vols rank 101st nationally in yards per pass, 127th in passing yards per game and 121st in sack percentage.
“It’s everybody,” Heupel said. “It’s quarterback.
It’s wideouts. It’s tight ends.
It’s protection. All of those pieces got to come together as we continue to grow.
But we have continued to take steps in that way.”
The latest College Football Playoff rankings have Tennessee at No. 8, five spots behind No. 3 Alabama, a team the Vols beat head-to-head this season. Heupel said he isn’t interested in doing the math right now, preferring to keep the focus on the next game rather than the bigger picture with a month left before the SEC Championship in Atlanta.
Texas A&M arrives with its own frustrations. The Aggies moved the ball for 457 yards at No.
23 South Carolina but could only turn that production into three field goals in a 17-9 loss. It was the second straight week they took a lead into the fourth quarter on the road and came away empty, a pattern that also showed up in the Oct. 24 loss to No.
13 Alabama.
Mike Elko called it another disappointing finish and pointed to a loss of composure at key moments. Tennessee will be the Aggies’ fifth ranked opponent of the season, and Elko said his team has to respond.
“It’s an opportunity for us to get up off the mat and prove who we are,” Elko said. “All you can do is go back to work and try to correct the things to put yourself in position again to finish the way you’re capable of finishing.”
Texas A&M is 4-5 overall and 1-5 in the SEC, with just one FBS win in nearly two months - the Oct. 3 victory over Arkansas. The Aggies’ other recent win came against The Citadel, an FCS team, in October.
“We’ve made improvements, but we’re not a program that’s looking for improvements. We’re looking for wins,” Elko said.
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The bigger question heading into Tennessee is who Reed will have available to throw to. Wide receivers Ashton Bethel-Roman and Kelshaun Johnson both sat out the South Carolina game, and Mike Elko did not provide any updates on their status, leaving their availability uncertain as the Aggies keep searching for answers at receiver. Offensive coordinator Holmon Wiggins is expected to remain in place for the rest of the season, so for now the focus shifts to whether Texas A&M can get healthier in time to give Reed a fuller set of options. [Read more 🡒]