The Tennessee Volunteers' spring game is now in the books, and there was a lot of good to take away on the offensive side of the football. Tennessee's top three quarterbacks in Nico Iamaleava, Gaston Moore, and Jake Merklinger all had their moments. A number of wide receivers made impact plays, with Mike Matthews and Chris Brazzell II notching touchdowns of over 60 yards each.
However, one place where the Vols' offense fell short was in the running game, an area in which Tennessee had a lot of success in 2023. That's thanks in no small part to a key strength on the defensive side of the ball for the Vols: their defensive line. Although they were facing an offensive line missing several starters, it's clear when the ball was handed off that they held a significant edge.
For the game, Tennessee running backs ran a combined 15 times for just 49 yards between both the Orange and White teams. Khalifa Keith ran a total of 9 times for 30 yards. DeSean Bishop added 2 carries for 9 yards. The only rush from anyone over 10 yards came when Merklinger broke free through the pocket and scrambled for a 26-yard touchdown.
Tennessee's front was largely sound, and they showed the physicality when they were actually allowed to: on running plays. The rules of the game preclude them from tackling quarterbacks and generally tone down the physicality of the game to a degree. However, that was not the case when the ball was handed off, and Tennessee's front did mostly what they're supposed to do.
According to Josh Heupel on Saturday, the defensive line, anchored by James Pearce, Jr., should be the strength of the team in 2024.
"Hopefully the strength of our football team to be honest but we're a long way away from kickoff," Heupel said before the game when asked if his defensive front is the strength of the defense. "I love the experience, but all spring long, they've come out with a purpose. They've set the tone, created the energy on the practice field. They've grown fundamentally. It's a group that's really tight inside of their meeting room, too. Proud of what they've done. Excited to see them compete today."
There were some things to be worried about on the defensive side of the ball after Saturday. Tennessee's secondary simply gave up too many big plays.
However, it looks like they should be just fine holding their own at the line of scrimmage. That's as good a place as any to work from while trying to build a championship-level defense.
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