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Tennessee Falls To #1 Alabama: Three Takeaways From Their Loss

By Kyle Schmidt

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 08: Head coach Jeremy Pruitt of the Tennessee Volunteers brings his team onto the field prior to a game against the East Tennessee State University Buccaneers at Neyland Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennesee won the game 59-3. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 08: Head coach Jeremy Pruitt of the Tennessee Volunteers brings his team onto the field prior to a game against the East Tennessee State University Buccaneers at Neyland Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennesee won the game 59-3. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images) /
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AUBURN, AL – OCTOBER 13: Linebacker Deandre Johnson #13 of the Tennessee Volunteers celebrates after a big play during the fourth quarter of their game against the Auburn Tigers at Jordan-Hare Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Auburn, Alabama. (Photo by Michael Chang/Getty Images)
AUBURN, AL – OCTOBER 13: Linebacker Deandre Johnson #13 of the Tennessee Volunteers celebrates after a big play during the fourth quarter of their game against the Auburn Tigers at Jordan-Hare Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Auburn, Alabama. (Photo by Michael Chang/Getty Images) /

#1 – Tennessee Continues To Fight

Jauan Jennings has been a fan favorite since the 2016 season.  Against the Tide, he had six catches for 102, his most yards in a game this season.  It is good that the Volunteers’ quarterbacks are starting to find him more as the season goes on because when he gets the ball good things seem to happen.  He has emerged as a leader on the offense and plays hard on every snap with.

After missing the first half of the game because of a targeting foul last week against Auburn, Daniel Bituli entered the game in the second half and still managed to be one of the team leaders in tackles.  Bituli came into the season with high expectations and has started to set himself apart with his hard nose play on the field.  He has become one of the leaders of this much-improved defense and it will be fun to watch him continue to develop and grow as a defender.

Although he didn’t lead the team in tackles, Kyle Phillips made the play of the day for the Tennessee defense when he intercepted a pass by Alabama’s Jalen Hurts and returned it 27 yards for a touchdown.  With the Volunteers already down 51-14, Phillips made the interception and would not be denied getting into the end zone.  He showed great heart and determination and refused to quit in spite of the score.  Phillips used his frustration to show the younger guys on the team that it is never okay to quit playing hard.

Keller Chryst was able to come into the game after starting quarterback Jarrett Guarantano was forced to leave after taking a big hit and do a nice job of leading the offense.  Chryst completed 9 of 15 passes and threw two touchdowns and no interceptions.  For someone who went to Tennessee as a grad transfer, Chryst has shown great maturity this year in accepting his role as the backup quarterback and he showed great leadership by being able to step in and lead the offense down the field.

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