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Tennessee coordinator wants more improvement in up-tempo offense
By Jason Hall
Published:
When Mike Bajakian joined Butch Jones’ staff as Tennessee’s offensive coordinator, he promised a fast, uptempo offense. In year one there were some growing pains as players adjusted to the new scheme. But after last Sunday’s 38-7 victory over Utah State, it seems Bajakian is seeing the results he expects from his players.
“That’s as fast as we’ve moved since I have been here,” said Bajakian. “We want to snap the ball with more than 20 seconds on the play clock and we were able to do that 20 times.”
Against Utah State, the Tennessee offense ran 76 plays through three quarters and 48 in the first half alone. Justin Worley enjoyed a career day passing with 273 yards and three touchdowns on 27-of-38 passing.
The rushing attack, according to the coordinator, needs to see improvement. Tennessee’s running backs combined for 110 yards on 39 carries for a 2.8 yard average. Bajakian considers an efficient run to be anything over four yards or the distance required to earn a first down. Hoping to improve its running game, Tennessee has been practicing some of the fundementals
“We talk about getting more than the play is designed for,” Bajakian said. “We can go out and get any running back or receiver that can catch the ball and get tackled. The difference makers are the guys that can break tackles or make people miss. We stress that all the time, learning how to run after the catch and how to run at the second level.”
Tennessee will need to match a fast Arkansas State team that not only boasts an up-tempo offense, but also a talented and experienced defense.
“They’re very sound schematically,” Bajakian said. “They play disciplined football. They’re experienced in the back end. They have two preseason all-conference DBs. They’re a physical group.
“They know how to play the game. They do their job well.”
A former freelance journalist from Nashville, Jason covers Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Kentucky
