Five Things To Know: The Win Over Florida

In a packed house with a checkered crowd, Knoxville was shaking during Tennessee's SEC opener against division rival Florida. In a back and forth competition, the Vols, led by Hendon Hooker, pulled away late in the third quarter and secured the Tennessee win. Here are five things to know from the victory:

1. Hooker "Elite" in Win

Hendon Hooker's impressive season continued Saturday afternoon, as he totaled a career-best 461 yards of offense and three touchdowns. The redshirt senior signal caller completed 22-of-28 passes for 349 yards and recorded 13 rushing attempts for 112 yards. His performance marked the first 300-100 passing-rushing game by a Volunteer QB since Joshua Dobbs accomplished the feat vs. Georgia on Oct. 10, 2015.

"There were some big plays in the football game," head coach Josh Heupel said. "Hendon Hooker played his butt off; he played at an elite level. He was decisive with the football and accurate with the football: intermediate, short and long. He used his legs at the right time, created big plays and was just a tough competitor. Offensively, we fed off of him all night long.

"Hendon was fierce. He played like a warrior tonight. We had a lot of guys that did that tonight, but Hendon was relentless in the way he competed. Obviously, it was good enough to play the way that he did. He played at an unbelievable and elite level."

Hooker also moved up the record books in several categories. With a one-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Bru McCoy in the second quarter, Hooker extended his streak of consecutive games with a touchdown pass to 16. Hooker is chasing Heath Shuler's program record of 18 consecutive games with a touchdown pass during a stretch from 1992-94. With two scoring tosses Saturday, Hooker owns 39 career touchdown passes at Tennessee, putting him in sole possession of sixth place in program history, passing Jarrett Guarantano (2017-20) who had 38.

By attempting 28 passes without an interception Saturday, Hooker cracked the SEC top-10 list for consecutive attempts without an interception (212), ascending to ninth and passing players like Tim Tebow, Joe Burrows, Jalen Hurts and Tua Tagovailoa during the performance.

Hooker has multiple touchdown passes in 14 of his 17 games at Tennessee, including each of his last seven outings. He has accounted for multiple touchdowns (passing and rushing) in 16 of 17 appearances at UT. Saturday marked the seventh time in his Volunteer career that he has rushed for a touchdown and passed for a touchdown in the same game and the 13th such time in his entire collegiate career.

2. Home Field Advantage

Home field advantage is not a euphemism when it describes Neyland Stadium. For the sixth time in program history, #CheckerNeyland took over the Vols' home field. In one of the most anticipated games of the season, all 101,915 seats were filled, perfectly coordinated to create an iconic checkerboard in the stands. Following last week's sellout against the Akron Zips, Saturday was the first time since 2016 that the Vols had back-to-back sellout games, and the first time the Vols have had consecutive sellout weeks since 2009.

"What a great night on campus and on Rocky Top," head coach Josh Heupel said. "Fan base had unbelievable energy. I knew it would be that way, but it even surpassed my expectations. Vol Walk was unlike anything I have ever seen as a college football player or college coach. The energy inside the stadium was electric. You guys are a huge part of this win tonight; I appreciate everything you guys have done here as we try to build this program."

The top-20 matchup against the division rival was a spectacle across the nation, as ESPN's College GameDay, the most-watched college football show in the country, paid a visit to Rocky Top's Ayres Hall Saturday morning. The Vols did not disappoint, earning their second victory over Florida in a #CheckerNeyland game.

3. Fourth Quarter Takeaways Loom Large

With all the talk about Tennessee's high-powered offense, the Vols' defense continued to make timely plays in big moments. The unit forced a pair of turnovers in the fourth quarter to seal UT's second ranked win of the season.

With the Gators traling by 10 and driving inside the red zone early in the fourth quarter, Tennessee defensive lineman Omari Thomas stripped the ball from Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson, and redshirt senior linebacker Jeremy Banks immediately recovered it to give the ball back to the Vols. It marked the first forced fumble of Thomas' career after recovering the first fumble of his career during Tennessee's win at No. 17 Pitt. Tennessee capitalized on the turnover, capping off a 10-play, 87-yard drive with a 5-yard touchdown run by Jaylen Wright to extend UT's lead to 17 points—its largest of the game.

On the final play of the game, redshirt junior defensive back Kamal Hadden intercepted Richardson's last-chance heave toward the end zone. Hadden now has two interceptions on the season and three for his career. Senior defensive lineman Byron Young posted a career-high four QB hurries in the game, notching his fourth on the last play of the game that forced Hadden's decisive pick.

4. The Rise of Bru

With the absence of senior wide receiver Cedric Tillman looming over the Tennessee offense due to an injury suffered in last week's matchup against Akron, a major question heading into Saturday's showdown was: Who is going to step up at receiver?

Bru McCoy answered the call, taking yet another step in the game and posting a career-high in receiving production. In the first half alone, the redshirt junior receiver had 87 receiving yards. His first catch of the day was a 70-yard catch-and-run, a career-long reception, to the 5-yard-line that set up a touchdown two plays later. He continued the offensive barrage, connecting with Hooker again for a 1-yard touchdown with 17 seconds remaining in the half, pushing the Vols to a 17-14 halftime lead. The Palos Verdes Estates, California, native finished the game with 102 yards, his first collegiate game in triple-figures.

In the last three weeks, Tennessee has had three different receivers reach triple digits in receiving yards (Jalin Hyatt 166 vs. Akron, Cedric Tillman 162 at Pitt). It's the first time Tennessee has accomplished the feat since 2012.

5. Heupel Lives Up to the Hype

Head coach Josh Heupel has propelled Tennessee to its first 4-0 start since 2016. His Vols own two ranked victories and currently sit at No. 8 in the Associated Press Top 25. After the game, the second-year coach was beaming with joy on the outcome and the incredible atmosphere.

"How much fun is this, man?! I love it," Heupel said in his postgame interview on CBS. "Battled all night long, the fans were awesome, the environment is better than anything I have ever experienced. What a win!"

Heupel and his high-octane offense have posted 194 points through four games this season, a new record for the modern era at Tennessee, dating back to 1915. Tennessee has scored 30 points in each of its last seven games, the longest streak in the conference. It also marks the first time since 1993 UT has scored 30+ in four-straight games to start the season.

"I thought our players handled the week itself in a really positive way. I told them early in the week everything we worked for, and having been a player, blocking out the outside noise is not real. It is everywhere, so you are going to hear it. Understand the opportunity you have created for yourself, what the game is going to look like, and the opportunity to have College GameDay being here, the stadium, the energy, all that."

"The gameday atmosphere, that is Rocky Top," Heupel said. "This is what it is. There have been some times where it has not been that, but Vol Walk the way it is, that stadium rocking the way that it is, that is Rocky Top. For our recruits and our players, it is what we built. This is one of the great stories in all of college football. That is why the stadium looks the way that it does."

The potent Volunteer offense racked up 576 yards of total offense Saturday, marking the third time in four games this season with more than 550 total yards. Tennessee leads the nation in total offense this season, averaging 559.2 yards per game. Over the past two seasons, the Vols have posted more than 550 yards of offense six times overall and are averaging 494.8 yards per game during the Heupel era.

The Vols will not play next weekend, but return to play on Oct. 8 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to face LSU.

University of Tennessee Athletics

1. Hooker "Elite" in Win

2. Home Field Advantage

3. Fourth Quarter Takeaways Loom Large

4. The Rise of Bru

5. Heupel Lives Up to the Hype

Players Mentioned

Jeremy Banks

Kamal Hadden

Hendon Hooker

Jalin Hyatt

Bru McCoy

Omari Thomas

Cedric Tillman

Jaylen Wright

Byron Young

Related Videos