Nico Sucks, Alabama’s Dead, And The Vols Are Undefeated

Image: Kate Luffman/Tennessee Athletics

By Cody McClure

It was the perfect Week 1 win on Saturday. A solid B+ effort.

Tennessee looked pretty damn good, but not great. 45-26.

The quarterback, Joey Aguilar, did a lot of great things.

He looked comfortable in the pocket. Something we couldn’t say about the guy that came before him.

He looked confident on the field. He was in command of an offense that was able to effectively run with some tempo. And he was able connect on the deep ball.

Things that weren’t often said in regard to the UT quarterback position last year.

Aguilar looked like an experienced quarterback. Like a guy who had been out there before. Like a guy that had something to prove. And like a guy who wanted to win.

But there’s room for improvement.

He threw a number of high balls. He had timing issues, particularly when it came to connecting with receiver Mike Matthews. And he made a couple of mistakes that included a fumbled hand-off and some risky throws.

There’s no doubt, though, that the Aguilar talk has been overwhelmingly positive coming out of the Syracuse game.

My basic thought, I think it was after one of those first-down scrambles, was “man, we’ve got ourselves a quarterback.”

And when you couple his performance with what Nico did against Utah (11-of-22, 136 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) — you might say Vol Nation was vindicated.

So Joey looked good, but there’s still plenty to work on after the film study. A good place to be after Week 1.

I feel the same way about most of the position groups.

The wide receivers will need to continue to work on their timing with Aguilar. They’ll need to continue working on the drops. Work on the route running, etc.

But shoutout Braylon Staley. Stud. And shoutout to the tight ends. Miles Kitselman just does Miles Kitselman things.

The offensive line has work to do when it comes to getting things solidified. I like the pieces on the o-line, but eventually you want some continuity. UT was forced to shuffle the pieces on Saturday with the absence of freshman David Sanders.

Let’s get that figured out. Chemistry is everything on the o-line. Looks like we got some road graders though. I like that.

Defensively, yeah we gave up 26 points, but my consensus is that Tennessee will be just fine. It was 38-14. It was dominant. We just let our foot off the gas. That’s what I believe.

If there’s one question mark currently it’s the defensive line. The boys are a little banged up.

But who is the coach on staff you trust the most to figure out his position group? Rodney Garner. Without a doubt.

The linebackers had some big moments. I’ve spent most of Monday morning replaying that Arion Carter sack over and over in my head. And how about that Jeremiah Telander diving interception? Stunning.

Everybody’s pumped about the secondary. Who needs Jermod McCoy and Rickey Gibson when you’ve got Colton Hood and Ty Redmond???

I say that in jest, of course, but depth looks GREAT here. Jalen McMurray is a playmaker. Boo Carter… well, Boo may be a little behind. But we know the talent that he brings.

All in all, I’m more excited about Tennessee Football today than I was on Friday.

The way I see it, that means this weekend was a success. Just gotta keep getting better every day.

Oh, and by the way, Alabama is dead.

Say it with me, folks — Nico Sucks, Alabama’s Dead, and the Vols are undefeated!

Nico Sucks, Alabama’s Dead, and the Vols are undefeated!

Nico Sucks, Alabama’s Dead, and the Vols are undefeated!