Keys to Tennessee reaching Atlanta this season
- Wyeth Wilson
- May 15, 2015
- 2 min read
Any time that a team has a successful season in sports, several things go their way to ensure that success.
That will be no different for the Tennessee football team this season in their quest to win the SEC East.
Here are some things that will need to happen for the Vols to reach the SEC Championship Game for the first time since 2007:
Stay healthy
In year three of the Butch Jones era, Tennessee has gathered talent, but not necessarily depth.
This is evident at the positions of quarterback, linebacker, and offensive line especially.
Chances of divisional title run for the Vols would be greatly lessened if injury were to befall to any of those positions.
Quarterback Josh Dobbs is the player that Tennessee needs to stay healthy most, and going through a tough SEC schedule like UT has, it might be difficult to keep him on the field.
Losing any key contributors would set back the Vols, and make it harder to keep up with SEC East foes.
Improve the defense
Though Tennessee ended up finishing eighth in the SEC in total defense, they were much improved from 2012 and 2013.
But to win an SEC East championship, they will need to improve even more.
Tennessee gave up 24.2 points per game last season, and getting that number down to under or around 20 would help the Vols’ chances in the SEC East greatly.
Last season, Tennessee’s pass defense gave up more yards than its run defense did.
But this season, UT’s secondary is considered one of their strengths, and one of the places where they will have the most talent.
If Tennessee can get its defense to just improve a little more, the offense will do the rest.
Win the easy games and get some help
Tennessee most likely will not finish 8-0 in SEC play, so they will need some help from other SEC teams in giving losses to Missouri and Georgia.
The Vols also cannot afford to slip up against Vanderbilt, Kentucky, or even South Carolina if they want to win the East.
The Florida game is an interesting one, not because the teams are even (Tennessee is better), but because the Vols just can’t break through against the Gators.
Early on, Tennessee’s top competitor looks to be Georgia, who has to play Auburn and Alabama from the SEC West.
And if the Vols can pull off the win over the Bulldogs at home, that would be potentially three losses and not owning the tiebreaker over Tennessee, which would be hard to overcome for UGA.
Missouri, another East contender, draws Arkansas and Mississippi State from the West.
Those games aren’t as tough as Georgia’s cross-divisional games, but the Tigers will be going through a brutal SEC schedule like the rest of the league, where they are sure to suffer some losses.
Tennessee will suffer some setbacks in the conference, but if other teams are losing as well, it evens out.
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