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Josh Heupel talks Tennessee’s struggles against Austin Peay, first look at Florida
By Mark Kern
Published:
On Saturday, Tennessee secured a 30-13 victory against Austin Peay, but it wasn’t up to the standard that coach Josh Heupel wants for his program.
Tennessee allowed Austin Peay to convert on 3 4th down plays in the 1st half alone. Quarterback Mike DiLiello, who converted one of the 4th downs with a 45-yard run, threw for 260 yards and 1 touchdown.
Pass defense was an issue, as the Vols allowed the Governors 260 passing yards, and it brought back signs of a pass defense that ranked 128th out of 133 last season.
While they didn’t play as well as they wanted on Saturday, Heupel said on Monday the team has responded well to make sure they fix their issues.
“Real good,” Heupel said. “Really good energy. Out on the grass with them today, but really good energy in the meeting room too. I anticipated that from these guys. We have strong leadership and guys care about their performance. They care how they get there too.”
Tennessee heads to Florida to take on the Gators in the Swamp on Saturday. The Volunteers haven’t defeated the Gators in Gainesville since 2003, and Heupel knows it isn’t going to be easy.
“They have great team speed,” Heupel said. They have athletes who can go make plays in space. You have to bottle up the run game, that’s a huge thing they do. That sets up their play-action pass, and a year ago, they hurt us with some of that. We have to be able to defend the run and play assignment sound and play the ball well when it is in the air.”
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET in Gainesville on ESPN.
