Vol Report: UT Looks to Continue Success in Kentucky Series

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee redshirt freshman quarterback Jarrett Guarantano, sophomore linebacker Daniel Bituli and senior tight end Ethan Wolf met with the media on Tuesday afternoon in the Ray and Lucy Hand Studio to talk about the team's prep for this Saturday's road game at Kentucky.

The Vols will hold their second practice of the week on Tuesday afternoon at the Anderson Training Center.

Saturday's game at Kroger Stadium is set for a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff and will be aired live on the SEC Network with Tom Hart (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (analyst) and Cole Cubelic (sideline analyst) on the call.

The Vols and Wildcats are both trying to bounce back from road losses to SEC West foes last Saturday.

Vols Look to Continue Series Dominance over Wildcats

When the Vols and Wildcats meet for the 113^th time this weekend, UT will be looking to extend its winning streak over Kentucky to six games.

The Big Orange has dominated the series with an all-time record of 79-24-9. Tennessee's 79 wins in the series are the most it has against any opponent in program history. More impressively, the Vols have come away victorious in 31 of the past 32 meetings between the two programs with the only loss in that span coming on the road in 2011 by a score of 10-7.

Despite the long history of success over Kentucky, Tennessee knows that they'll be facing a tough and talented Kentucky team in Lexington this Saturday.

"They're a very physical team, a very tough team," Guarantano said. "They're 5-2, so they figure out how to win games. They definitely could have beaten Florida, but they had a few mental errors in the process. They're definitely a very good team and we're just looking forward to the test."

The Vols also know they'll be going up against another solid defense this week, which is one of the many challenges that comes with playing in the SEC.

"They have some linebackers that will run around and hit you," Wolf said. "They play some 'Bear' front, which always proposes a challenge. That's what we've been seeing these past couple of weeks. The biggest thing we can do is apply the Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina games and everything we learned to now because it's going to be the same defense. Not much is going to be different, just different guys.

"We've got to come out here this Saturday and start from the first play and finish all the way through the last."

Guarantano Confident in Offense

Despite the team's recent struggles on the offensive side of the ball, Guarantano and the rest of the offense still have confidence in their ability to turn things around.

"There's some things that we've done to hurt ourselves, but our confidence is still there," Guarantano said. "I think the offensive linemen still have trust in me and John Kelly and the receivers to make plays, and John Kelly has trust in them. I think that we're just in a good position and we're ready to explode these next couple of weeks and just play well."

Wolf agreed that the offense isn't lacking in confidence and that turning things around simply comes down to execution and a passion for being successful.

"You just go out and practice every day and make plays and execute," Wolf said. "It comes down to more than being successful at football, it comes down to loving to play it. That's why I play the game."

Bituli Continues to Excel

In the absence of starting middle linebacker Darrin Kirkland Jr., Bituli has been one of the players to step up his game and fill that void.

Bituli leads the Vols with 57 total tackles this season and ranks fifth in the SEC with 8.1 tackles per game. The sophomore from Antioch, Tenn., returned an interception 97 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter of last week's game at No. 1 Alabama as well.

"I was a spy on the running back, but the running back decided to stay in the box and block for the quarterback," Bituli said when describing the play. "I actually thought Quart'e Sapp was going to get a sack, but the quarterback didn't see me because of Quart'e's blitz, and he just threw it and luckily I was under the ball and able to make a play."

Among the many strides Bituli has made this season, he believes that pass coverage has been one of his biggest areas of improvement.

"I'm feeling a lot better. The coaches have done a good job of talking to me and explaining what I have to do, so I definitely feel like I'm growing into that."