What we learned from the first weekend of the SEC Football season
By Matt Green
Tennessee is going to struggle on defense
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Tennessee returned seven starters on the defensive side of the ball, and even though one of those starters was all-time sacks leader Derek Barnett, they were still expected to be respectable on defense. Apparently no one told the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
Georgia Tech absolutely dismantled Tennessee’s defense. They ran for 535 yards and six touchdowns on the ground. First-year starting quarterback, TaQuon Marshall, torched the Volunteers for 249 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 44 carries. He even threw the ball for 120 yards on just 5-for-10 passing.
Tennessee may have walked away with a win, but it didn’t feel like it. The Yellow Jackets’ triple option attack is different from every other team the Volunteers will face this year, but it doesn’t bode well for their rushing defense, and SEC football is all about establishing the running game. In the end, Tennessee is 1-0, and that’s better than the alternative.
