University of Tennessee Athletics
Dobbs Again Ready For Alabama Test
October 26, 2014 | Football
By Brian Rice
UTSports.com
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Joshua Dobbs draws all the easy assignments.
A season after making his Tennessee debut on the road against Alabama in place of an injured Justin Worley, Dobbs made his first appearance of the 2014 season on the third series against the Crimson Tide.
With Worley sidelined with a shoulder injury, Nathan Peterman drew the starting nod, with Dobbs slated to see time as part of the game plan.
And once he saw the field, Dobbs was determined not to come off of it. The sophomore was 19-of-32 for 192 yards and two touchdowns through the air.
"I thought Josh Dobbs provided a spark for us," head coach Butch Jones said. "He adds another element in terms of the run game. Any time you have a running quarterback, that poses another threat to the defense."
Dobbs also carried the ball 19 times for 75 yards, the most by a Vols quarterback since Tee Martin's 81 yards against Syracuse in 1998. His 75 rushing yards was a new career high, besting his 52-yard performance in the season finale at Kentucky last year.
"I felt pretty comfortable," Dobbs said. "We had a good week of preparation in practice and when you have a good week of practice, it builds a lot of confidence in your play."
Dobbs moved the offense on his first three drives, but couldn't come away with points. His fourth drive was very different.
Trailing 27-0, Tennessee took over on its own 16 and promptly picked up a first down on back-to-back Jalen Hurd carries. But a loss on a first-down pass and short gain on second down left the Vols with 13 yards to gain to keep the drive going. Dobbs found Alton Howard streaking over the middle for 28 yards and the big first down. With Alabama on its heels, Marlin Lane went up the sideline for 44 yards, setting up first-and-goal. Two plays later, Dobbs placed a pass on Josh Malone's back shoulder for a 9-yard TD.
"Josh is a versatile quarterback," Hurd said. "That's really good in this offense. He did a great job tonight, just going out there and leading the team like that. He did awesome."
The only knock on his performance were two turnovers, a fumble after an Alabama defender got a helmet on the ball and a late interception on an overthrown deep ball. They were miscues that Dobbs took ownership of right away.
"We had two turnovers tonight, so we have to eliminate that," Dobbs said. "The first maxim is the team that makes the fewest mistakes will win, so we have to do a better job of cleaning up those turnovers in practice."
Jones said Dobbs' performance was far from perfect, but was pleased he was ready when his number was called.
"For Josh to come in and play the way he did, I thought he executed some throws down the stretch," Jones said. "The one throw on the slant on the goal line, we need to get seven points there. But I thought he was in command and showed some very good poise."
Some of that poise came from being put in the right situations with the play calls. Dobbs credited offensive coordinator Mike Bajakian with making calls that allowed him to do what he does best.
"We did a good job of executing the game plan," Dobbs said. "Coach Jake did a good job of putting me in good situations and the receivers did a good job of making some plays and moving the ball."
Dobbs also credited his teammates for continuing to fight, despite the early 24-point deficit.
"Everyone was locked in," Dobbs said. "Everyone still knew we had a chance in the game. Our team had great mental toughness and that's something we will definitely need through the rest of the season."
