Josh Heupel’s Vols have a stingy D to complement this dazzling offense

As a coach, Josh Heupel made a name for himself as a guru who led offenses so quickly that defenses were left gasping for air and unable to sub out new players.

In three seasons, that was enough to get Tennessee back into the AP Top 25 rankings.

Now his Volunteers are much more balanced, with a stingy, hard-hitting defense that has helped them climb to fourth in the poll and put them among the teams seeking a national title. As Heupel pointed out, Tennessee’s history goes far beyond Peyton Manning, Willie Gault and Johnny Majors.

“The standard at Tennessee is to be elite on defense,” Heupel said after his Vols defeated then-No. 24 NC State in early September. “This is the home of Reggie White, Al Wilson and Eric Berry.”

White was posthumously inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame for terrorizing quarterbacks in the NFL. Wilson is the linebacker who led Tennessee to its last national championship in 1998. Eric Berry was the 2008 Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Year and a five-time Pro Bowler in the NFL.

Tennessee entered this season with just one preseason AP All-American: pass rusher James Pearce Jr., who is considered a possibility for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Pearce and defensive coordinator Tim Banks, who has accompanied Heupel since his arrival in Knoxville, are providing great help.

The Vols (4-0, 1-0) have held five straight opponents under 250 yards of total offense, a streak that began with a shutout against Iowa in the Citrus Bowl in January. They also defeated NC State in Charlotte, holding then-No. 15 Oklahoma to just 222 yards, baptizing the Sooners into the SEC and giving the Vols their first road win over a top-15 team since 2006.

Oklahoma ended Tennessee’s streak of 19 consecutive quarters without giving up an offensive touchdown, Tennessee’s longest streak since the Vols shut out 15 straight opponents between 1938 and 1939.

Despite implementing scholarship cuts under former coach Jeremy Pruitt as part of Tennessee’s self-inflicted punishment for NCAA violations, the Vols have built up enough depth to allow Banks to play against a variety of linemen and freshen up the pass rushers hold. Against Oklahoma, five linemen had at least one tackle for loss while the Vols held the Sooners to a season-low 36 yards rushing.

Joshua Josephs was named the SEC’s co-defensive lineman of the week with three tackles, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and a tackle for loss.

Heupel said rotation can change one opponent to another. He praised the players for believing in the coaches’ demands.

“They can play hard because they stay fresh throughout the entire football game,” Heupel said.

The Vols lead the nation in giving up just 176 yards per game while allowing just 7 points per game and 50.8 rushing yards per game each.

Lineman Elijah Simmons set the tone on Oklahoma’s opening drive on offense, breaking through with a 5-yard tackle for a loss. That was the first of 11 tackles for a loss in a defensive display that also included a safety and three sacks. Heupel said Simmons played “violently and destructively” the entire game.

Simmons said the Vols were so deep on the defensive line that it didn’t really feel like there was a true group of starters. They definitely instilled confidence in their teammates with the way they played earlier this season.

“I believe, and I feel like everyone else believes, that they are the best in the country,” defenseman Christian Harrison said.

Tennessee has won 13 SEC championships but last played in the championship game in 2001. The Vols’ last SEC championship came in 1998, when they won the national title, ushering in the BCS era. The Vols visit Arkansas (3-2, 1-1) on Saturday night and have home games against Florida, No. 1 Alabama and Kentucky before visiting No. 5 Georgia on Nov. 16.

Heupel sees his defense building a strong identity, which means his offense doesn’t need to score big every game to win.

“Then it’s about linking all three phases together to make sure that you end up on the right side of the scoreboard,” said Heupel.

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