The Volunteers won’t have much time to recuperate and get ready because their final game of the season is this coming Saturday night in Nashville against in-state rival Vanderbilt. Last week’s defeat to South Carolina by a score of 63-38 for the 9-2 Volunteers was a devastating blow (5-2 SEC).
The latest College Football Playoff rankings were released on Tuesday night, and Tennessee fell from the number five spot to the number ten spot. Hendon Hooker, the starting quarterback for the team, has suffered a torn left anterior cruciate ligament and will not be able to play again this season.
Why do the Volunteers have to keep playing after this point?
Omari Thomas, a defensive tackle for the Tennessee Volunteers, has stated that he “doesn’t really know when was the last time we played for a New Year’s Six bowl,” but that the New Year’s Six bowl game is still an important bowl game for his team. You may bet on the fact that we will feel enthusiastic about that in the years to come.
The Volunteers’ most recent appearance in a postseason game that could be termed a “New Year’s Six” bowl was in the year 2000, when they played in the Fiesta Bowl. This was the year after Tennessee had won the national championship the previous season.
Joe Milton III, a senior transfer from Michigan and Hooker’s roommate who has had limited experience at quarterback so far this season, will be looked to by Tennessee to lead the team to victory. Milton III has had limited play at quarterback so far this season.
“I think this is a system offence, but we’ll look at the snaps he’s taken to make sure,” said Clark Lea, the head coach of the Vanderbilt Commodores football team. I don’t believe that it deviates too much from the strategies that have brought them success in the past.
Milton has thrown 33 passes and completed 23 of them for a total of 573 yards, scoring six touchdowns while throwing no interceptions. He has also run seven times for a total of seventy-two yards.
“Rookie Quarterback AJ Swann Ready to Lead Vanderbilt to Victory”
“(Milton) practised all year long like he was the starting quarterback, so he is ready for this,” said Tennessee running back Jabari Small. ” It was inevitable that he would eventually be given the opportunity. It is sad that it has to take place under these circumstances; but, he is well prepared for anything may come.”
After pulling off a stunning upset over then-No. 24 Kentucky and then-No. 10, Vanderbilt improved to 5-6 overall and 2-5 in conference play, giving the Commodores a chance to play in a bowl game for the first time since 2018.
The Commodores are unsure as to whether or not their rookie quarterback AJ Swann, who hasn’t played since suffering an injury on November 5 against South Carolina, will be ready to play this weekend. This week, both he and another junior player, Mike Wright, shared starting duties for the club.
While Wright has completed 78 of 135 throws for 946 yards, 12 touchdowns, and four interceptions, Swann has completed 104 of 181 passes for 1,195 yards and 10 touchdowns. Swann has thrown four interceptions.
Tennessee to Take Advantage of Vanderbilt’s Poor Defense
Lea stated that the squad should be aware that Swann “hasn’t played football in a while,” because Swann “hasn’t played football in a while.” “Everyone is aware of his abilities, and he has put in significantly more work than was required this year in order to be completely prepared. The priority must be placed on his health. If he is in good enough shape to compete, we should select the guy who contributes the most to the success of our team.”
Vanderbilt is planning to take advantage of the fact that Tennessee’s defence gave up 606 yards of total offence the week before when they played South Carolina.
Tennessee holds a 78-33-5 advantage over Vanderbilt in the all-time series and has won the three most recent meetings between the two schools. In 2018, the Commodores were able to achieve their long-awaited victory in Nashville.
