KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – With the excitement still palpable among fans and the college football world following No. 3/4 Tennessee’s win over then No. 3/1 Alabama, the attention of everyone within the Vols’ locker room has shifted solely to this week’s contest against UT Martin.
UT’s success up to this point can be largely attributed to its ability to leave the past in the past, no matter the result, and turn its focus to the next task at hand.
“It was a good game (and) a good win for the team,” junior defensive back Tamarion McDonald said on Tuesday. However, McDonald quickly followed that by saying that last week is now in the past and the team’s lone focus was going 1-0 this week.
“We’re moving on,” McDonald said. “We prepare the same every week no matter who we play, so just staying focused, staying locked in on the details and on us.”
Keeping the same mentality from the first half of the season during the stretch run will also be important for Tennessee if they hope to reach their ultimate goal.
“Nothing changes for us. We go to work from Monday to gameday. Nothing changes,” junior offensive lineman Javontez Spraggins said. “Win a game? That’s fine, we go back and we get ready for the next one.”
This week’s challenge is facing a UT Martin team that features one of the top offenses in the FCS. The Skyhawks rank sixth in the FCS in total offense, averaging 485.2 yards per game, including nearly 300 yards per game through the air. UT Martin is also averaging 37.5 points per game, a figure that ranks 11th nationally in the FCS.
“They’re very versatile in terms of what they’re doing,” defensive coordinator Tim Banks said during his press conference on Tuesday. “They have some elements of the team we just saw this past weekend. I think they also have some elements in their throw game in terms of what our offense does. Their scheme is very good.
“I like their quarterback (Dresser Winn), he’s very savvy, he’s made a lot of plays for those guys, and they got good skill. We tell guys all the time, we don’t take anybody lightly. We know these guys are going to come in ready to play and we’re working extremely hard to make sure we’re ready to play as well. I got a lot of confidence in our guys, in the maturity that we have and the leadership that we have. We know we’ll get their best effort and they’re going to get our best effort, as well.”
Saturday’s Homecoming game will kick off at noon ET and be televised on the SEC Network. Tickets for the contest are available in limited quantities at AllVols.com. In addition, season tickets for the 2023 campaign are also on sale now at AllVols.com.
Transcripts, along with select player quotes from Tuesday’s media availabilities can be found below.
Defensive Coordinator Tim Banks
On the key to getting pressure on Bryce Young…
“We obviously respect him as a football player. We knew that if he played, he was going to be a handful, and obviously he was. To be totally honest with you, everything we do starts with pressure. We went into this game with the same mindset. We wanted to be able to attack, whether it was just with our front four or whether we are bringing five, we wanted to make sure that we tried to make him uncomfortable if we could. He obviously made some plays, but obviously we made some as well. Our hats off to him, (he is) a tremendous player and he obviously did a great job.
On having the second-best run defense in the SEC…
“I’m going to be honest, I know it’s going to be cliché, I very rarely even look at our stats, so I didn’t know. I know philosophically, we definitely want to be able to stop the run. Just the way we’re built, the players in which we’re playing with, they understand their gap responsibility, whether it’s our front four, our linebackers, our safeties are getting involved. We can’t allow teams to be able to throw it, run it – it just makes us uncomfortable, so to speak. So, we want to make sure we’re taking something away, and so far, we’ve obviously been pretty good at taking away the run. That’s a good stat to hear, but the reality of it is we know we’ve got a long season and we got to continue to get better.”
On creating a frenetic pace to the game on both sides of the ball…
“I think the reality for us is, again, I think it just starts with our philosophy. We want to play fast, we want to be aggressive, we obviously want to be physical, and it just so happens that our offense plays with that same type of mentality on offense. I guess what you’re describing is we’re playing with the same type of culture on defense. It’s great if it makes the other opponents uncomfortable, but is it by design? Yeah, if that’s what is working. But the reality of it is it’s just kind of who we are, and it’s in our DNA. We want to be as aggressive as we can, and hopefully, make the opponent uncomfortable.”
On some guys who did not play a lot who performed against Alabama…
“(I’m) definitely excited about the next man up mentality because we talk about it a lot. I think every coach in the country kind of talks about it. We definitely try to live by that mantra. We also talk about, you get what you earn, and a lot of those guys who got an opportunity in the secondary to play have been working really hard throughout the camp and obviously the season, and it just so happened that this was the game that those guys had to play a lion’s share of the reps. I’m extremely proud, because I know how hard those guys work. The fact that they went in there and didn’t blink is a testimony to the culture that we have in place right now in terms of guys just being ready when their name is called, and I thought that came to fruition obviously Saturday.”
On getting a stop on a sudden change after a turnover…
“We pride ourselves on, anytime we take the field, trying to put the fire out, so to speak. Obviously, playing a great team in which we were playing, having a chance to go out there and put the fire out, was great to see those guys stand tall.”
On the things Tennessee can correct with their defense going forward…
“I think it’s the defensive hold. Like I tell guys all the time – he asked a question about the run defense – that’s not a product of just the front nor just the linebackers, it’s a product of everybody. What we ask the DB’s to have to do, what we ask the linebackers and d-line gives us the ability to play great run defense. Conversely, it’s the same thing in pass defense. It’s the front four, it’s the linebackers being where they need to be, it’s obviously the DB’s as well. There are numerous things that we have to get better at. Obviously, when he (the quarterback) breaks contain, making sure we’re taking the proper angles that way. Continuing to finish when the ball is in the air, but that’s football. We work on those things every week, and I’ve definitely seen some progress, but we realize we’re still a work in progress overall.”
On the progression of Doneiko Slaughter and his performance on Saturday…
“Neiko is one of the guys that we’re extremely proud because of how hard he works. He never complains and when he gets his opportunity, he goes in and he produces. One of the things that I think is one of his strengths is he’s very versatile. I think you mentioned he’s played STAR, we even played him at corner during the spring, he’s played both safety spots. Like I tell guys all the time, the more you can do, the more value you bring. He’s extremely valuable for us right now because he’s a plug-and-play player. It doesn’t matter what position, so to speak. How did he play? He showed some flashes. He did some really good things. I think he’ll be the first one to tell you, there’s obviously some things he needs to do better, but the good news with him is, I know he’s going to work toward it and I think he’ll be even better from the experience that he got this past weekend.”
On Jeremy Banks’ performance Saturday…
“Yeah honestly, that was just Banks being Banks. He plays extremely hard, he hustles to the ball every single snap. He’s just one of those guys that you have to slow him down then speed him up. When you have that type of mentality, typically, he’s more right than he is wrong. We’re always proud of Jeremy. We know exactly what we’re going to get in terms of effort and physicality. At this point, there are obviously still some things he knows he needs to work on to get cleaned up, but we were obviously pleased with how hard he played this weekend.”
On what he has seen from UT Martin’s offense and their passing attack…
“They’re very versatile in terms of what they’re doing. They have some elements of the team we just saw this past weekend. I think they also have some elements in their throw game in terms of what our offense does. Their scheme is very good. I like their quarterback (Dresser Winn), he’s very savvy, he’s made a lot of plays for those guys, and they got good skill. We tell guys all the time, we don’t take anybody lightly. We know these guys are going to come in ready to play and we’re working extremely hard to make sure we’re ready to play as well. I got a lot of confidence in our guys, in the maturity that we have and the leadership that we have. We know we’ll get their best effort and they’re going to get our best effort, as well.”
Offensive Coordinator/Tight Ends Coach Alex Golesh
On deciding when to hurry up versus waiting for a review or challenging the play…
“In a situation like that (Jabari Small scoring at the goal-line), they (the officials) held it. They will generally hold it. The center judge will stand over the ball and won’t let you run another play. As they were reviewing it, we have TV screens in the box on about a 12-second delay. We are looking at it to see if we need one. We had the offense ready and had our next play dialed up, but they won’t let you snap the ball anymore. With the communication the refs have, they’ll just stand over the ball.”
On deciding when to challenge a play…
“We didn’t need to challenge it because they’re going to stand and hold over the ball. Any of those types of plays, they’ll always review, and like I said, we are on a 12-second delay, so we’ll be able to see it. We have one guy designated in the box on each side of the ball that will tell us, ‘man, it’s close, we should (challenge),’ if the end result isn’t what we want. But obviously in that case, it looked good. In a game like that, there’s enough angles where you can tell.”
On the effect playing fast has on the opponent…
“I don’t have a whole lot of control over what Coach Banks is doing, although he is sitting two seats over and I can kind of hear it. I’m more worried about the next drive. For us, it’s what we do. It’s what Coach Heupel wants. It’s aggressive on both sides of the ball. That’s how we play, that’s what the kids know. For us, we know going in, ‘here is where we are going to go.’ As long as it looks like what we thought it would look like, the kids know how we are rolling and what we are doing. Really proud of the way that they started. Really proud of the start our group got. Obviously, the key when you get up like that is now, you have to continue to keep your foot on the gas. Coach Heupel told us Friday that we are going to be aggressive the whole time, and he let us be aggressive the whole time.”
On the partnership between the offensive and defensive approach..
“It’s the philosophy as a program from Coach Heupel that we are going to be aggressive on both sides of the ball. We are aggressive on special teams. I think it’s just what we do. The whole program is that way. We’re building towards that every week. That would be a great question for Coach Heupel. As coordinators, for all three of us, it’s an aggressive approach in everything we do. It’s how we coach, it’s how we recruit, it’s the way this program has to be, is that we are going to be aggressive in everything that we do. I don’t know if I answered your question, but we are playing fast on offense trying to score on every play.”
On Jalin Hyatt’s five-touchdown performance and how that materialized…
“I think for us offensively, it’s finding those matchups and then trying to exploit them. If you’re asking if I knew he was going to catch five touchdowns going into that game, I don’t know. I’m just so proud of who Jalin Hyatt has become. A year ago this time, I don’t know that we would have sat here and said he’s going to catch five touchdowns against Alabama. The growth within our program, I’m more proud of him in that sense than maybe anyone else within our room, because he took the challenges that he was presented with a year ago, most of them brought on by himself, and just kept working. He’s the same guy that every evening in the summer, he’s on the jugs. Every single time Hendon (Hooker) was out there throwing, Jalin Hyatt was who he was throwing to. I’m not singling Jalin out, because Ramel (Keyton) is there, Cedric (Tilman) is there, and Bru (McCoy) when he got here, really that whole wideout group. Kelsey’s (Pope) done an incredible job of creating, taking what we had going and just continuing to build on the culture in that room, and really the culture in all of our rooms. You don’t always see the end result of that. You don’t end up on the winning side of it, and all we talk about daily is control your process. We talked about it again on Monday, that the only thing that matters is our process. Jalin is a byproduct of that. I couldn’t be more proud of how he’s attacked his process. That’s the result that happened. It could have happened that way, it could not have. He could have reaped the rewards of that, he could not have, but long run, who Jalin Hyatt has become is totally a credit to what Coach Heupel has built here in terms of that we are process-oriented. We continue to plug, and the end result is what the end results is going to be, but what Jalin has done is a true example of what this program, what we have worked so hard as a whole group to build here, which is a process-based program that continues to develop young people. I’m so proud of him and what he’s been able to do, and then you see him at practice today and it’s like nothing ever happened. All he’s working on is perfecting his craft and coaching Squirrel (White) and coaching Jimmy Calloway. It’s just who Jalin has become. If you can have that every day from an entire program, special things can happen.”
On how rewarding it was to put up 52 points on Alabama…
“I think rewarding is a good word. The amount of work, it was an emotional end to it. I got to see my wife and kiddos on the field right at the end of it. The amount of work everybody has put in is the rewarding part. We got here January 28th, a year and a half ago, and it has been a lot of work to say the least. To reap the rewards of that is obviously rewarding. I think for all of us, our families, the player families, the guys that stayed here—a lot of guys didn’t—and the guys that stayed here and have poured into our coaching staff. Our coaching staff in return has poured into them. The end result was going to be what the end results was going to be, we do not control the true end result of that. The fact that our kids just continued to play hard, we played really hard in that game offensively. Our offensive line played really hard, our wideouts played really hard, our tight ends, running backs and quarterback. The rewarding part is that we went into that game and expected to win. I told those guys on Friday that, ‘you have earned the right to be confident throughout the week,’ and how we practiced Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and their process leading up to it. I keep using that word, but you have to earn the right to win every week. You earn the right to win every week in how you control your process, in how we practice, in how we study film and the extra time it takes. There is a lot that goes into a win. There is a lot that goes into just playing a game. The rewarding part is for everybody involved, including our families. That’s why I brought up my family. To see them and everything they have sacrificed, that is the rewarding part. Whoever gets credit gets credit, I don’t think it is about any single person. Just to see that stadium the way it was, these people that paid astronomical amounts of money to come to these games and pack this place out and actually having a real home field advantage, it’s rewarding for everybody. It is the end result of the process we have poured into it. Our players is where it starts.”
On productivity by condensing the offense in short yardage situations…
“The offense is based on creating matchups. So, whether those matchups are spread out or those matchups are tight, it’s creating matchups. I think we talked about it in the spring and we talked about it in the summer, continuing to create variation in what we do, more so than are we tight or are we wide. Just continuing with tempo to create different pictures. We’ve been able to grow in every facet offensively, but that’s just part of it, is in certain situations, you need to condense it to be able to create some edges. You saw us be able to condense it and to go back out and be able to condense it to stay in, but it’s staying balanced is the key to the whole deal and building from week to week. Next week, there will be a different wrinkle to it, and that’s our job to figure out those wrinkles. We’ve played tight. We haven’t played tight consistently. I think that’s been the growth within our offense, is the ability to play tight, then play wide, then tight, then wide … and to create confusion in some ways, to create extra gaps in some ways. But I think as we evolve offensively, that’s part of it. I know the under-center question from a year ago, hopefully we’ve answered that. We took it as a challenge, and we have answered the bell there. But just continuing to evolve and create different pictures for defenses, to obviously be less predictable.”
On Saturday’s environment impacting recruiting…
“Those young people and their families that were there on Saturday, I think similar to the Florida game and in a lot of ways similar to every home game. You know, when you sell out the Akron game, that’s a statement. I think when you’ve spent the last 18 months selling something and then they get to see it, that’s monumental. I think kids want to be part of a winning program. It’s one thing to sell it, it’s another for them to actually see it. It’s been a lot more fun to make those phone calls. I think we now feel like a year and a half in, those relationships are established. I think you need some of those types of wins to stamp you to actually say we are making progress. We’re the same football team we were before this season started, in terms of who we are, what we’re about and the culture that Heupel has set here. But I think just seeing the end result has certainly helped, especially locally. In Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina. The local states where the attention has been so big. But obviously, we have to capitalize and we have to continue to play well, that it’s not just we’re on a hot streak. This is who we are as a program, we need more talent, we need to fill the roster out, we need to replace key positions as we go. I think kids understand that. I think it’s been monumental.”
On UT Martin…
“Yeah, really excited. Big game, in-state. It will be awesome.”
Junior RB Jabari Small
On Josh Heupel‘s demeanor during the game…
“Yeah, coach Heupel does a good job of keeping his composure. He has like a natural poker face, so it is kind of hard to read. He is just one of those competitive people. He is always thinking about the next play or till the clock hits zero. That is just the competitive nature that he has.”
On where the belief of beating Alabama came from…
“Just confidence in the work we’ve put in. The way we were playing, it just gives us momentum and confidence just to keep going. We know they’re a pretty good team, but at some point you get kind of fed up with just being stuck in the trap of always losing. We worked so hard. We know our process and how hard we work. The first step to winning is believing you could win, so that’s what we did.”
On being successful running the ball and the offensive line’s play…
“I think a year ago, last year, if we would have run the ball (effectively) that would’ve been a different game as well. This year we knew that we had to learn from our mistakes and just try to run the ball. I thought (Jaylen) Wright ran the ball extremely well. The o-line, all five of those guys including the guys they rotated in, did a good job of protecting Hendon (Hooker) and opening up and getting some push for the run game as well. For the most part, we just try to take what we can get and finish runs. We know we got to get downhill vertical against a team like Bama because they have athletes everywhere. It was a total team effort. Each part of this offense helps each other phase of it, so we have to start with the run.”
Junior OL Javontez Spraggins
On the internal belief within this team…
“We pretty much knew before this year came, after the bowl game, where we wanted to be. We made our minds up and we said, ‘hey, this is going to be a different year. This is going to be a year Tennessee has never had’. Best to keep our heads down up until this point and we’ve been on a roll ever since.”
On being named to Joe Moore Award watch list as a group…
“It means a lot because as a group, we set that as one of our achievements that we wanted to finish the year off with. Being the best o-linemen in the SEC and college football in general. Knowing that is basically telling us we’re on the road to completing to our goals, we just have to keep a steady head.”
On how to keep the same focus for the next six games that they’ve had for the first six…
“Nothing changes for us. We go to work from Monday to gameday. Nothing changes. Win a game? That’s fine, we go back and we get ready for the next one. Before the season, we knew that we were going to have ups and downs playing the game of football this year, but we just didn’t know what time they’d come. We’ve had those games and we’ve tried to play our best those games and they’ve come out the way they’ve come. Every game we’re playing, we’re just going to keep going forward and not dwell on the past and things that we’ve done.”
Junior DB Tamarion McDonald
On resetting after an emotional win last weekend…
“It was a good game (and) a good win for the team. We’re moving on. We prepare the same every week no matter who we play, so just staying focused, staying locked in on the details and on us.”
On how Josh Heupel is different in his approach…
“I have seen other coaches take certain games different ways and treat them differently, but this coaching staff and this team, we treat every week the same. After every win, it’s move on to the next one.”
On how comfortable he is playing in the STAR position…
“It’s very comfortable. As games kept going, I got comfortable and more comfortable at it. I was never uncomfortable, just learning it a little bit more and the ins and outs and that would be about it. But, I was always comfortable.”
On the final sequences of the Alabama game…
“When they (Alabama) got to the field goal, it wasn’t over. We had one more play to get the ball back to our offense, so we played it, got the ball back for them, they did what they do, like they always do. It was crazy. I really couldn’t believe it. After the game I stood still for a minute. I really used to dream of this kind of stuff, and I was there, so it was good.”
Junior DB Doneiko Slaughter
On how it was starting against Alabama…
“It was amazing out there. It felt like a movie out there, starting with my guys out there, putting all the work in. I just went out there and tried to step up for the team.”
On if being a junior helped with starting for the second time in his career in a large game…
“Yeah, I did feel calm out there. It wasn’t my first time playing against a team like Alabama. I really felt like I was built for this league.”
On battling injuries in the secondary and the importance of being ready to step in…
“It’s a big step, just because it’s going out there every other snap. It goes throughout the week about preparation. Coach (Tim) Banks is big on preparation and when your time comes, you’re either going to take advantage of the opportunity or the moment is too big for you.”
-UT Athletics
