No. 7 Vols look to carry over dominance as they face Kent State in week three
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – Tennessee football has started the season hot.
The No. 7 Volunteers have outscored its first two opponents 120-13, and they look to continue that same dominance this Saturday as they welcome Kent State.
The Vols are coming off their ninth ranked win of the Josh Heupel era. The 51-10 win over No. 24 NC State marked the largest margin of victory for the Vols against any AP ranked team since Oct. 13, 1990 when Tennessee defeated No. 9 Florida, 45-3.
Even though the Golden Flashes are coming into Saturday’s contest 0-2, Coach Heupel emphasizes that he will have his players in the right mindset and well prepared.
“You can go back and look at the scores from across America each week, and there is examples of guys that didn’t prepare, didn’t practice right, or didn’t have the right competitive spirt to go take advantage of the next opportunity,” Heupel said.
The Vols have looked great in all three phases of the game in their first two contests.
One group that has been in the spotlight is the Tennessee defense.
The defense limited NC State to just 143 yards of total offense. They were supreme in the backfield too as they recorded 13 tackles for loss.
For a defense that has not given up a touchdown in 12 quarters of action dating back to the Citrus Bowl, they deserve a lot of praise.
“It feels great just for us to get that recognition. People are finally starting to wake up,” redshirt senior defensive tackle Bryson Eason said. “I feel like we’ve been one of the better units or defensive teams in the country. It feels good, but we’ve just got to keep working and continue to get better.”
Offensively, Tennessee was still red hot.
It was redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava’s third start, and he racked up SEC Freshman of the Week honors for the second consecutive week and was named Manning Award Star of the Week.
Related coverage: Nico Iamaleava and Cooper Mays tab SEC weekly honors
Iamaleava accounted for 276 yards of total offense and three touchdowns.
Despite throwing two interceptions with one of those converting to a pick six, Iamaleava stayed composed and in command of the offense.
“I think one thing we learned about him is how he is going to respond to something that doesn’t go positive, doesn’t go his way,” Heupel said. “He came back and played the next play independently, played it like the first play of the game.”
