OPENING
Want to start by honoring the guys who played their last game tonight
Disappointed isn’t the right word, it was painful
They put a lot into this and it got away from them
The guys here the first two seasons jumped fully in and he wants to thank them for their contributions
They can feel however they can’t to feel , they were beat up by the result but that won’t affect them going forward
They’ll unpack the season and be on a path to further improvement in January
As far as tonight, credit TN and Josh Heupel, they bounced back from a tough game and had great effort on their end
They sustained a few drives but had self-inflicted wounds
The first drive was about the long throw
The second was about missed opportunities
They settled into the game defensively they wanted to play in the first half and then came the punt return
The second half was an unfortunate swing, three consecutive possessions started at midfield
He still felt they’d be in position to hold on but they played unstructured against the run and it’s uncharacteristic, where they were a step short or out of a gap TN made them pay
They didn’t tackle well but they were slow getting to the fit and playing against good players
The game got away from them and the explosive TDs hurt
They’ll bottle up the emotion around tonight and apply it to January
But tonight is about honoring the guys who played their last and the legacy they’ll leave
Their future is bright and they love where they’re headed
Decision to go to AJ and then back to Mike
Mike has been a great bright spot this season, he was resilient and battled through personal disappointment
He led them to consecutive league wins
AJ hadn’t played football in a few weeks and they wanted to give Mike the chance
When they knew they had to throw to win, AJ positioned them best
After four scores they decided it was time to get the ball on the perimeter and get the vertical passing game going
The overturned double move hurt, they were unable to find the end zone
AJ was banged up and they wanted to protect him after that last hit, they didn’t want him to end the season battling an injury
A lot of first-down runs early and conservative play-calling after UT gave up 63 points last week, what was behind that?
What they did was their identity and it’s worked
They wanted to establish the run game
They were able to get some conversations on second down early
What he saw was rhythm was killed on self-inflicted wounds
They played to their identity, part of that is to limit possessions
They had a breakdown in complementary football and paid for it in field position
Do you wish you’d taken more shots downfield early?
Seemed to indicate yes
When they got across the 50 and wanted to put the ball up more, the breakdowns happened and they were struggling to get ahead of schedule
They want high-percentage plays and first- and second-down efficiency
They thought the naked bootleg was good
The success he’s had this season, what has to change to get better against the very best teams like tonight
Every game has a different narrative
It’s about maximizing opportunity and explosive TDs
Alabama hit some double moves on them
Every snap matters
TN out-ran them on the perimeter at times
Against Georgia you saw an offense that sputtered and they missed opportunities there with Sheppard and McGowan
The best teams in this league don’t miss their opportunities
When they won it was the opposite
When there are opportunities they have to become dangerous
They can’t have situations like tonight
The coverage units have to down the ball and get the defense out there
The fourth-down stop hurt early in the first half
What happened on special teams?
They had two returners, they got out-leveraged and couldn’t cut the ball off
The others were about not winning one-on-ones
They weren’t collapsing coverage and the ball got out on them
Thoughts on the season overall
They’ve shown progress
Tonight was painful, he hurts for the team and fans
To have made the strides they made, they wanted to extend the season
They’ve had a lot of fun the last few weeks
There’s a belief they’re closing the gaps
It’s inevitable they’ll continue to improve
When they got here they were in a tough place
They’re bigger, faster and stronger and there’s a gradual closing of the gap
The process is righteous, it doesn’t deliver them where they want to be but they have to stay patient
CJ Taylor
He couldn’t finish the game
He was x-rayed and it wasn’t a fracture
Want to start by honoring the guys who played their last game tonight
Disappointed isn’t the right word, it was painful
They put a lot into this and it got away from them
The guys here the first two seasons jumped fully in and he wants to thank them for their contributions
They can feel however they can’t to feel , they were beat up by the result but that won’t affect them going forward
They’ll unpack the season and be on a path to further improvement in January
As far as tonight, credit TN and Josh Heupel, they bounced back from a tough game and had great effort on their end
They sustained a few drives but had self-inflicted wounds
The first drive was about the long throw
The second was about missed opportunities
They settled into the game defensively they wanted to play in the first half and then came the punt return
The second half was an unfortunate swing, three consecutive possessions started at midfield
He still felt they’d be in position to hold on but they played unstructured against the run and it’s uncharacteristic, where they were a step short or out of a gap TN made them pay
They didn’t tackle well but they were slow getting to the fit and playing against good players
The game got away from them and the explosive TDs hurt
They’ll bottle up the emotion around tonight and apply it to January
But tonight is about honoring the guys who played their last and the legacy they’ll leave
Their future is bright and they love where they’re headed
Decision to go to AJ and then back to Mike
Mike has been a great bright spot this season, he was resilient and battled through personal disappointment
He led them to consecutive league wins
AJ hadn’t played football in a few weeks and they wanted to give Mike the chance
When they knew they had to throw to win, AJ positioned them best
After four scores they decided it was time to get the ball on the perimeter and get the vertical passing game going
The overturned double move hurt, they were unable to find the end zone
AJ was banged up and they wanted to protect him after that last hit, they didn’t want him to end the season battling an injury
A lot of first-down runs early and conservative play-calling after UT gave up 63 points last week, what was behind that?
What they did was their identity and it’s worked
They wanted to establish the run game
They were able to get some conversations on second down early
What he saw was rhythm was killed on self-inflicted wounds
They played to their identity, part of that is to limit possessions
They had a breakdown in complementary football and paid for it in field position
Do you wish you’d taken more shots downfield early?
Seemed to indicate yes
When they got across the 50 and wanted to put the ball up more, the breakdowns happened and they were struggling to get ahead of schedule
They want high-percentage plays and first- and second-down efficiency
They thought the naked bootleg was good
The success he’s had this season, what has to change to get better against the very best teams like tonight
Every game has a different narrative
It’s about maximizing opportunity and explosive TDs
Alabama hit some double moves on them
Every snap matters
TN out-ran them on the perimeter at times
Against Georgia you saw an offense that sputtered and they missed opportunities there with Sheppard and McGowan
The best teams in this league don’t miss their opportunities
When they won it was the opposite
When there are opportunities they have to become dangerous
They can’t have situations like tonight
The coverage units have to down the ball and get the defense out there
The fourth-down stop hurt early in the first half
What happened on special teams?
They had two returners, they got out-leveraged and couldn’t cut the ball off
The others were about not winning one-on-ones
They weren’t collapsing coverage and the ball got out on them
Thoughts on the season overall
They’ve shown progress
Tonight was painful, he hurts for the team and fans
To have made the strides they made, they wanted to extend the season
They’ve had a lot of fun the last few weeks
There’s a belief they’re closing the gaps
It’s inevitable they’ll continue to improve
When they got here they were in a tough place
They’re bigger, faster and stronger and there’s a gradual closing of the gap
The process is righteous, it doesn’t deliver them where they want to be but they have to stay patient
CJ Taylor
He couldn’t finish the game
He was x-rayed and it wasn’t a fracture
