Postgame Quotes: UT 53, Vandy 28

Nov. 28, 2015

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Tennessee Head Coach Butch Jones

(Opening Statement)
"First of all, a great, great team win. Puts us at eight wins, five consecutive wins. I'm just really proud of our players, particularly our seniors. We talked about finishing. Everything in our program is based off of finishing, and we're learning how to finish.

"I'm just proud of the resolve and the resiliency of this football team, particularly led by our senior class. This is a team that did not let adversity define who we are. They just kept grinding, building it, and putting their head down - just working their consistency in approach every day.

"This football team has been mentally ready to play for 12 games. That is very difficult to do, and you do that with great leadership, great competitive character, and great character in your football program. We have that. We have something that we're building very, very special here. As we all know, it takes time to build, but you're starting to see it manifest within the confines of the Anderson Training Center. I'm proud of our players' continuous improvement.

"You look at the special teams game, I believe that was our sixth special teams touchdown of the year. Zach Azzanni runs our punt return team, and those guys take great pride in their performance. What can I say about Cameron Sutton and the 10 other individuals that are blocking for him?

"That was a great defense, allowing 18 points per game. The third quarter was very, very big. We outgained them 201 [yards] to 15. We had 12 plays of over 15 yards. Just a complete win.

"I do think that this is one of the best stories in all of college football, with a young football team coupled with a resilient group of seniors, and how far we've come. I'm just proud of them.

"You go through football seasons, and sometimes some of them go slow and some of them go fast. Just talking with these kids, it's hard to believe that the regular season is over with. It's one of those years, and the momentum that we have, you don't want it to end. That's a tribute to these kids. It's a tribute to everyone in our football organization. We have one game left. We'll take some time off, heal up a little bit, and get back to work here at the end of the week."

(On performing well against the better SEC run defenses)
"I think our players continue to gain confidence week in and week out - the way we practice, their mentality to run the football. I can't say enough about our offensive line and how much they've grown and developed. Our wide receivers take great pride in their blocking. Our tight ends have improved greatly in their blocking, and we have some talented running backs as well. I think when you add that all together, it makes for a great mix of being able to do some special things.

"I looked at the stats, and out of the top 10 defenses in the country, we've faced four of them going into this game. When you look at where we're at in terms of total offense, points per game, being able to run the football, they've come a long way.

"I think our coaching staff has done a great job. I think Mike DeBord has done an unbelievable job of setting the mentality and playing complementary football.

"There were critical points in the game. We go for it on fourth and one, which we have to be able to get. We don't do that, but our defense forces a safety, then we're ahead again in the field position. When Vanderbilt scored a few times, we answered it with responding with getting points on the board. That just stems from confidence and great resolve. We had some individuals step up and make some big plays tonight."

(On the defensive adjustments at halftime)
"We made some adjustments. Ralph Webb is a really, really good football player. They did some different things on balance, and we missed some checks here and there. That was on us. To our players' tribute, they adjusted, got the calls in, and they performed very well and provided a spark for us, particularly in the third quarter."

(On importance of win in terms of bowl selection process )
"You just answered the question for me. It was monumental. It was big, first and foremost, for our players to finish strong. They have worked so hard and have been through so much this year. For this senior class--we were in the huddle with about 11 minutes to go in the game when we were going out on offense--I told them to go enjoy these 11 minutes. Life goes fast. Time goes fast. Again, we have a lot of momentum. I believe we are one of the best teams in the country, and our players believe that. There is a lot of positive energy surrounding our program. That is a tribute to our staff, our players and their work ethic."

(On Jalen Hurd's 1st half versus 2nd half performances)
"We were able to get him to the second level. He runs the ball very hard. Again, we felt we had to wear them down with tempo and running the ball. They are a very good defense. They gave up 18 points per game. They are going to have success. We talked about running the ball with patience. When you play the great defenses, the other thing is having patience and understanding that a two-yard gain, getting the dirty yards, a zero-yard gain and not having a tackle-for-loss, a four-yard gain, five-yard gain--those are all positives. I think that is a mentality that we talk about in the offensive line room, the backs and everyone. When you run the football, you have to be patient with it. Sometimes, you tend to be impatient and expect to have a big run all the time. You are getting four or five yards per gain, those are all positive yardage football plays. You are able to stay on schedule with manageable third downs."

(On preseason expectations for offensive production)
"We focused on the task at hand of what it would take the continuously improve week in and week out. It's a tribute to our players. The summer, strength and conditioning, carrying that over into fall camp, then throughout the course of the season, the way they prepare themselves on a weekly basis, the way they take care of their bodies--you could just see the confidence growing. It's been a combination of a lot of little things which add up to the big games."

(On efficiency in the red zone)
"I thought we just executed. Our players did a great job of executing in all three phases. I thought we were aggressive. That was a defense that wasn't giving up very many touchdowns in the red zones. Our players made plays. We were able to create some space. It stems up front. It's a line of scrimmage league. Be persistent with the run, and sooner or later they are going to break."

(On Jalen Hurd)
"Did Jalen do anything different? Part of that is being able to run the quarterback effectively. It all goes hand-in-hand. You talk about Alvin Kamara having 99 yards, Jalen Hurd having 120 and Josh Dobbs having 93 yards. They compliment each other any time the quarterback gets involved in the run game. We threw the ball efficiently. We had some big plays. I thought Josh Smith particularly early in the game stepped up and made some big plays for us as well."

(On finishing the game)
"That is the maturation process of this football team. To be able to see that and not let up--when you saw the look in the player's eyes, they wanted to finish the game. It's all about protecting Neyland Stadium. I want to think our fans for coming out and supporting this football team. The whole state of Tennessee should feel good about their Tennessee Vols. Everything that these players have given to them--we talk about giving my all for Tennessee. Not to be cliché, but these individuals give their all for Tennessee each and every day. They understand they represent everyone in this state and take great pride in that."

Tennessee OL Mack Crowder

(On what the seniors have done with team 119)
"It's a great honor to be able to finish out a season like that. I believe coach said that we haven't done something like that since 2007. Being able to be a part of that senior class that has helped to bring Tennessee back to being in one of its' rightful places, and one of the best teams in college football right now. It's just a great honor to be a part of that."

(On running through the "T" one last time)
"It was a very humbling experience. You never think the end is going to come. You think you have an unlimited number of games in Neyland. That's not the case at all. You may only get at most 40, or something like that if you're lucky to redshirt and dress out every game. It was definitely very humbling. I'm very proud to say that I was able to run through that 'T'."

Tennessee QB Joshua Dobbs

(On keeping the back field contained for four quarters)
"It's difficult. We all do different things. We do a great job of finding ways to get us into space, and letting us go and make plays. It's great. I have weapons all across the field, even at the wide out position. If you get the ball into their hands, they will make a play. It's definitely great to have that across the field, and to utilize it well to put up big points and big numbers."

(On getting over 500 yards of offense)
"Execution. When we came in we talked about winning the game, and our preparation. We came in and we were able to execute and respond when our defense needed us to go down and drive the ball and score a touchdown, and then keep our defense off the field at times. We did a great job of playing complementary football. Punt return always helps. It was definitely an all-around collective win."

Tennessee OL Kyler Kerbyson

(On the run game)
"We have a three-headed monster in the backfield with Dobbs, Jalen and Kamara. That just gives us running lanes all over the place, and it is hard for defenses to stop. Vandy, to their credit, were doing a good job of stopping some of our runs. We had to adjust and pick out different plays to run because they were stopping some of them. I love blocking for these guys. It's pretty easy."

(On 'Running Through the T' for the last time)
"It was humbling. It was sad to a point. It tells you that it's over. It's your last one. That is always pretty sad to know that you won't do that again. There is some joy in knowing you are going to start a new chapter in your life and can look back and see how much this program has helped me grow as a person and as a man. I give everything to this. I am so happy to be a Vol. I wouldn't take anything back that happened. I wouldn't want to go any other place for college. I am very appreciative of the opportunity I got."

Tennessee RB Alvin Kamara

(On what it was like to get separation from an opponent and pull away)
"Just realizing how good of a team we are. Early in the season we were still kind of trying to find our identity and now we're playing good complimentary football. The defense has the offense's back and the special teams has the defense and the offense's back. So when the defense gets going and gets some stops, the offense feeds off of that and goes and puts up points. And then it'll boomerang around and the defense will go up and get another stop. On special teams, I feel like we have big plays on special teams every game. Every time the special teams unit goes out, or the offense or defense is out there, we're looking for big plays. So just playing together is what I feel like is helping us right now."

(On when the team realized how good this team could be)
"Throughout preparing each week, just seeing the things that we do well and watching film and going back and looking at one or two plays that could of changed our season around a little bit. But we're still having a successful season, and we're doing great things. We just have to win today. And now we're going to get some rest in and be strong and ready for bowl preparation."

(On playing a top defense and if the offense took it personally to succeed)
"Any game we take personal. They're coming to play to get a win, so we take that personal. But we've played top defenses all year. We just rely on our preparation throughout the week. And we know that if we prepare well we can go out and play with anybody."

Tennessee LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin

(On slowing down Vanderbilt's offense in the third quarter)
"Early on, they weren't just driving the ball, they were making big plays. That put them in good position. We knew when we calmed the big plays down, we would be successful, and that is what we did and got them off the field."

(On Coach Jones saying Tennessee is one of the best teams in the country)
"I think he is right if you just look at who we have played and how we have played them. Iowa [could be in] the playoffs, and we handled them earlier in the year. We took Alabama, Florida and Oklahoma to the fourth quarter. They are all top teams this year. It proves that we can play with anybody. If we would have finished those games out, it might have been a different season. We try not to focus on that. We finished with eight wins. It's the first time that has happened in a long time."

Tennessee DB Brian Randolph

(On helping get Tennessee back to prominence)
"It means everything to us. We are all prideful guys. We wanted to come in and make Tennessee a better place than when we got here. I felt like I did that, and I know the rest of the boys will continue to do it."

(On the importance of Todd Kelly Jr.'s interception before halftime)
"It was very big. It took points from them. They were driven on us. He is always a big playmaker. Big-time players make big-time plays in big-time situations."

Tennessee DB Cameron Sutton

(On punt return for a touchdown)
"Coaching staff does a great job week in and week out with the game plan. My front 10 do an amazing job with just creating alleys and lanes for me to run through. Without them, it's not possible. My job is just to catch the ball, first and foremost, and secure the ball and get it back to the offense. Whatever happens after that, hopefully it is positive for the offense. I always joke with the O-line and stuff about keeping them off the field as much as possible or making a distance for them to score points as short as possible. That's just taking care of the guys on the team, us playing for one another out there on the field and having fun and enjoying it while we're doing it. Again, like I said, my front 10 do a great job of just protecting me and fortunately I'm rewarded with the touchdowns and stuff like that, but without them it's not possible."

(On single-season punt return yardage program record)
"It's a blessing. It's amazing. I didn't know it until coming off before doing media, but again, it's not just me. My front 10, the coaching staff--they do a great job of just giving me good opportunities and putting me in the right position to make plays. Again, our philosophy in the return game is just making the opposing team pay and that's what we've been doing all year."

Tennessee DB Todd Kelly Jr.

(On the importance on settling the team down after the big play)
"I feel like it helped a lot, they were making a lot of plays the first half and we couldn't get to half time yet before making adjustments, so just I told the defense that someone needed to step up and it happened to be me. I was just put in a great opportunity and I tried to make a play and I did."

(On dominating the third quarter)
"I think it did help. It helped momentum wise. I just told the offense, I knew they were getting the ball to come back out and that we needed a quick seven to get this thing rollin and going. I told them that we would take care of them on the defense side of the ball as long as they took care of things on the offensive side of the ball. I think all three phases, offense, defense and special teams were tremendous today and that's what coach Jones always emphasizes. Having each others backs. No matter what unit you're on to take pride in it. So I think we did a great job on not only offense or defense, but special teams as well."

(On how it felt to beat the Vanderbilt Senior Night)
"It was actually awesome. This is definitely our state and I feel that playing Vanderbilt here at Neyland stadium means we can't let them win another game like they did a couple years ago. So I felt like once we were up we couldn't let up. I mean those losses at the beginning of the season really hurt but it was senior night and Coach Jones and Coach Martinez both let us all know that we couldn't let our seniors down tonight and that we needed to come out with a victory and that's what we did."

Vanderbilt Head Coach Derek Mason

(Opening Statement)

"Looking at this game for us, it was a rough day at the office. Tennessee played a great game, had a great gameplan. Our guys rebounded early, fought back early, especially offensively. Defensively, we just missed opportunities, a lot of missed tackles, too many third downs where we let those guys out. We were our own worst enemy tonight. We haven't done anything different in terms of gameplan and execution. We looked at these guys, we knew who they were. They weren't any different than we thought, we just need to tackle better, get off the field on third down, and just do a better job overall of just playing the game. It's disappointing, but hats off, they've got some talent on that side. We have some young talent, we saw the emergence of a young quarterback in (Kyle) Shurmur. Shurmur is going to continue to lead this program exactly where we need to go. Defensively, offensively and special teams we have to address some talent deficiencies within our program. With that, I think this program is going to continue to get better. Tonight, again defensively it was a rough day at the office. Special teams has been an Achilles heel all year in the return game, but we made some great strides with our offense, but not enough good things tonight in this ball game for us to win it. It's going to be a long nine months because we've got to work, and we have to grind and it starts with recruiting. We are going to recruit our tails off, we are going to make sure we close the gap as fast as we can, but I do believe this program is headed in the right direction. So we just have to continue to stay the course, teach our young kids during the offseason how to finish, if we can do that, we'll make the gains and the strides that we need to make to be the program we want to be."

(On the impact of Cam Sutton's punt return and interception in the red zone before halftime)

"I think it's a different ball game altogether. We are starting to get our footing. I believe when you go back and you look at those two big moments in the game, they were game-changing. The return obviously takes the wind out of your sails, but then you come back and you have a chance to move the ball down the field and get points, even a field goal. I just whispered to the young QB, I said, `listen, always take the points, understand where we're at, you saw the receiver fall, I know you thought he could make a play, but just take the points.' Again, just a young guy growing up, learning how to make good decisions and really take care of the football. It's a learning lesson, he'll get better. He's gotten better throughout his four or five games as the quarterback. This offseason is going to be a huge learning opportunity for him. I look forward to this football team getting there and us making sure we exhaust everything that we can to get better."

(On how scoring points became more difficult as game went on)

"I think the same thing that we have seen all year long, getting behind the chains. We had a couple of penalties and those penalties definitely made the difference for us in terms of getting off schedule. Any time you get off schedule and get yourself in third and long situations or second and long situations; that becomes hard to overcome when teams pin their ears back."

(On Cam Sutton's punt return)

"The second time for us we got downfield and covered. I thought inside we had two or three guys stacked on top of each other and no one really leveraged the football. You're supposed to keep the ball inside and in front as you are leveraging it. We had three guys on top of each other, (Cam Sutton) makes a vertical move, he starts to the right, makes a vertical move, gets vertical and slides back to his left, back to right and before you know it he's on the kicker. That's what good returners do. I talk to our returners about it, making sure you get north and south as fast as you can. You try to make a solid slice or a move to right or left and then get back vertical. That's what he did. That's two years in a row. He's been able to find his way. We have to cover better, got to get more depth, got to get better guys down the field to continue to press these returners. I believe you've got to find better guys who can play out in space. That's on me. I've got to do a better job, we have to do a better job coaching it and we will."

(On making improvements in recruiting)

"That's exactly what we are trying to do. We have to look at it from the standpoint of when you have a depleted roster this year, we've tried to make do with what we have, but we went into the season with 93 players. Anytime you go into the season with 93, 94 players on your roster, then you lose 10 of those. It makes you thin. We've never used any excuses for that. We've always said `next man up.' That had very little to do with this game. I just believe we didn't play well enough defensively tonight. Again, that's on me. What I'll do is I'll go back, I'll take a look at the film. I don't feel like I've called anything different. I just thought we needed to tackle and execute a little better. Again if we can continue to build on the talent that we have in our program with adding more talent to our program at the skill positions and even on the lines, I think we'll be a pretty good football team."

(On 2015 season)

"Some ground gained. I can't let everything about the game tonight jade what things have happened this year. I thought defensively, guys grew up. I believe Vanderbilt has found a quarterback in Kyle Shurmur. Some young guys have had a chance to get experience and grow. We understand where we our deficient. We have to address that through recruiting. That means making sure you get the talent in your program that you need to infuse it and compete in this conference. It's an every week, everyday challenge for our guys in practice; to take it from the class to the grass on gameday and be efficient. I truly believe that these kids have done a great job of growing through the season. It hasn't necessarily shown in the win column, but there were enough close games this year, where I can look at it and say, `we're not that far away.' We need to shore up some things, make sure that we can continue to recruit talent and we will be fine."

(On Ralph Webb)

"The one thing I will say about Ralph Webb is that Ralph Webb has done exactly what we thought he would do this year. He came, he competed, he played extremely well, he never backed down, he showed up every week. That's the type of young man I'm looking for. I'm looking for young men like that that can come in; they are willing to compete, they are going to work to be limitless in terms of the pursuit of greatness. I am just proud of Ralph, I am really proud of some of these seniors and what they have been able to do in terms of carrying some of these young guys, having to mentor these guys; their contributions will not be forgotten."

(On defense giving up a season high in points)

"I spoke to it earlier. I thought for us, we just didn't tackle very well. We didn't get off blocks, we leaked a little too much. I didn't call anything that I haven't called before. It wasn't a new defense, give Tennessee some credit for executing. Really, it was more on us, I thought we were there to make plays, we just didn't make plays. With that being said, you go back, you take a look at it, we didn't finish well tonight, that's not what you want to do. I'm not one to make excuses about anything. We own it, we understand what it is and we'll be better."

(On importance of big plays)

"It's critical. We talked about it going in to this game, we needed to see some things. I think we saw the emergence of a quarterback. Some receivers stepped up and made some plays. We've been looking for that production all year. If we had that consistency and production earlier in the year, we are looking at a different football team and a different record, but we didn't. It's nice to get it tonight. I wish we had something on the other side of the ball to go along with it, including special teams, but we didn't. I'm not going to excuse it. I'll build for 365 days and we'll get a chance to come back and play Tennessee again."

Vanderbilt RB Ralph Webb

(On Kyle Shurmur's play)
"Leadership, he stepped up when we needed him to step up. He was a leader out there for us today, and I'm proud of him."

(On being down 10-0 and getting the big run and getting back into the game)
"We just need a spark. We were never out of the game. We just had to keep playing, keep fighting, keep using forward and finish everything you do."

(On how this team is different from a year ago)
"The experience, that's what we needed. We got a year of experience under our belt. Those guys from my class on down, we're moving on. We are more mature now. I think we have more chemistry within each other. I think we found balance within the offense."

Vanderbilt C Spencer Pulley

(On cutting the lead then giving up the punt return and interception)
"It was unfortunate. Obviously.We would have liked to end the half with a score. Be able to come back out only down one score, but obviously it didn't happen. It didn't affect us too much. We came out of the half hyped up and ready to go. But obviously just couldn't get it done."

(On what you saw from Kyle Shurmur)
"I've said after every game and said that Kyle is a great leader, great player. I think he has the ability to be something special. I think this team moving forward is going to be something pretty special. I think there is going to be a lot of competition among positions, including the quarterback. I think there are a lot of good players that aren't known yet. I think that, along with the experience Kyle has gotten with the competition there is going to be pretty amazing."

(On the difference in Kyle Shurmur in the last month)
"Ever since he has been here he has been dedicated to the game. He's be dedicated to the team. It's not just him. You can go on and on about players who are like that. In the last couple of weeks, he's really got it. It clicked for him. He's always in there studying film. Always asking questions, whether it be to the coordinators, the offensive line, the running backs. He's always questions, always figuring it out, and that;s why he is ready to play on Saturdays."

Vanderbilt LB Zach Cunningham

(On how this team is different from a year ago)
"We are a lot closer with teamwork and companionship. Knowing the plays, and knowing what to be doing with our jobs, we've gotten a lot better at that this season."

(On your main goal in the offseason)
"Definitely getting stronger and getting bigger. Getting more into the playbook so I can know what I have to do coming into next season."

Vanderbilt LB Darreon Herring

(On how the punt return touchdown changed the game)
"It definitely took away some of our momentum. Going into the half just being down four points coming out into the second half, but things happen out there. It happened. As a team, we just went into the locker room and said we have to be better in the second half."

(On Tennessee's passing game being effective)
"It was pretty effective. Just blown coverages on all ends, the linebackers and the defensive backs as well. Just blown coverages. Things we went over in practice, that we didn't execute well."

(On being surprised about how the defense played)
"We definitely came away form this game surprised. That's not our defense out there that played tonight. We're a much defense. Coaches coached us well this week. They probably came in here and took the blame, but at the end of the day it came down to the players on the field, and just the execution that we didn't really have out there."

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