The 8-4 season for Tennessee wasn’t as bad as it seems. The Vols were pretty competitive every week, and a couple of plays here and there, and we are talking about their College Football Playoff match-up, not the Music City Bowl.
A big part of the ‘plays here and there’ was the defense not being opportunistic. If you remember 2024, the team that made the playoffs, the defense was a massive part of that campaign. They were one of the best in the nation and complemented Josh Heupel’s offense well.
In 2025, the defense took a significant step back.