It's time for Josh Heupel to stop with a gimmick that even Tennessee Vols fans are getting tired of seeing

If you've watched a Tennessee Vols football game over the last several seasons, you've almost certainly noticed what happens after UT kicks an extra point following a touchdown.

When Tennessee scores quick (a defensive touchdown or a quick offensive touchdown), you'll typically see a Vols player go down with an injury after the extra point.

Now, I know it's frowned upon to speculate on whether an injury during a football game is real or fake -- even though we know faking injuries to slow tempo is an epidemic in college football. But it's obvious to anyone who regularly watches college football what's happening after the extra point attempt.

The injury after the PAT gives Tennessee's defense an extra minute or two of rest. It's a smart strategy by Tennessee. But it's probably time for Vols head coach Josh Heupel to lay off the gimmick.

Josh Heupel and the Vols aren't doing themselves any favors with officials

Nearly everyone in the sport is faking injuries to some extent. I get it. I'm not suggesting that Tennessee is being unethical with the extra point gimmick. It's just part of the culture in the sport right now.

But every official on the field knows exactly what Heupel is doing. And the fact that it's being done so blatantly at this point has to rub officials the wrong way.

It's well known that Tennessee doesn't get a favorable whistle. The Vols get some calls, like every program does from time to time, but they aren't getting calls like Alabama or Georgia.

I think part of that is because Heupel isn't working the officials the right way. Instead of politicking and being strategic with officials, Heupel is essentially insulting them to their faces by blatantly having linemen go down in the same situation multiple times a game (even SEC Network play-by-play man Dave Neal mentioned the gimmick while calling Tennessee's win over Arkansas).