KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Moral victories don’t count for much in college football. But even in defeat, lessons are learned and silver linings can be found. No. 15 Tennessee suffered a crushing 44-41 overtime loss to No. 6 Georgia Saturday night, extending the Vols’ losing streak to the Bulldogs to nine games.
Tennessee had multiple chances to either win or take a potentially decisive lead, with a raucous home crowd behind it, but failed to take advantage. Coaches and players alike were left with a sour taste in their mouth and thoughts of what could have been.
In Tennessee coach Josh Heupel’s own words:
“Tonight, man, it’s going to hurt. We need to drink all that in and taste all of it, because if we’re going to move forward and be the team that we’re capable of, this feeling tonight has got to be a part of what continues to propel us and the urgency and the focus in everything that we do.”
Georgia silences naysayers ‘whistling by the graveyard’ in gritty, overtime road win over Tennessee
Will Backus
There’s optimism to be found, though.
Tennessee’s 41 points were the most it has scored against Georgia since 2009, and more than it has managed in its last three games against the Bulldogs combined. Heupel’s offense finally countered Kirby Smart’s smothering defense. It appeared as if the Vols evolved in a single game by putting 496 yards of total offense on the board.
A win would have put Tennessee in the SEC driver’s seat, but the loss still showed that Tennessee has what it takes to push for a second consecutive College Football Playoff appearance.
Tennessee’s offense is legit
Tennessee’s offense got off to a hot start to the 2025 season with new quarterback Joey Aguilar slinging the ball, but it was fair to question the Vols’ competition. They put 45 points on the board against a Syracuse team that subsequently struggled to put UConn away and then scored 72 points against FCS East Tennessee State.
Georgia represented a steep increase in challenge, especially given how the Bulldogs have handled Heupel in the past. Entering Saturday’s game, Heupel’s Vols had never scored more than 17 points in a game against Georgia and managed just six offensive touchdowns in a four-year span.
So Tennessee’s offensive output in Week 3 was very encouraging, especially since Aguilar showed that he has what it takes to keep up in the SEC. He made a couple of mistakes on deep throws, but he also connected with wide receiver Chris Brazzell II on touchdowns of 72 and 56 yards.
Brazzell was the star in a wide receiver corps that is more than outplaying preseason expectations. Mike Matthews and slot Braylon Staley made some standout plays, as well, as they continue to build rapport with Aguilar.
He also became the first Tennessee quarterback to complete all 14 of his pass attempts in the first quarter and three of his four passing touchdowns came from at least 30 yards out. That’s the type of explosiveness that Tennessee’s offense has sorely lacked since 2022.
An offensive line missing expected starting right tackle David Sanders Jr. more than held its own against Georgia’s vaunted defensive front. The Vols did a good job of providing Aguilar with a clean pocket almost all night long. As the game wore on, Tennessee opened more holes in the running game.
The Bulldogs had just one sack and two tackles for loss.
Tennessee has something in Duke running back transfer Star Thomas. Though the Vols are likely to run with a three-headed stable for the entire season, Thomas showed that he deserves more carries — and should perhaps lead the way — by averaging 6.7 yards per carry against Georgia. He’s got great contact balance and the vision you would expect from a veteran.
Defense disappointed, but help is on the way
Tennessee’s defense, on the other hand, did not cover itself in glory. The Vols limited Georgia to just seven points in the first quarter but got moved off the ball too easily when the Bulldogs shifted to a run-first focus.
Georgia rushed for 198 yards after it had just 190 yards on the ground in a Week 2 win against FCS Austin Peay. Quarterback Gunner Stockton had arguably the best game of his career by completing 23 of his 31 pass attempts for 304 yards and two touchdowns, including a perfectly placed 28-yard strike to London Humphreys that tied the game at 38-all with just over two minutes left in the fourth quarter.
The Vols’ defensive backs committed too many pass interference penalties that extended Georgia drives and looked a step slow in coverage on a few occasions.
It wasn’t all bad. Tennessee’s defensive front improved as the game wore on and logged three sacks and six tackles for loss. Of course, a somewhat lackluster performance can be expected given what Tennessee was missing on the defensive side of the ball.
The Vols were down both of their starting cornerbacks in Jermod McCoy and Rickey Gibson III and two of their top four defensive linemen in Jaxson Moi and Daevin Hobbs. Provided that context, the defense’s showing doesn’t look quite as poor.
Gibson’s season-long status is in the air. McCoy, Moi and Hobbs are all expected back at some point. Once Tennessee’s defense is back near full strength, it showed signs that it can acquit itself well against SEC competition.
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