University of Tennessee Athletics
Photo by: Kate Luffman/Tennessee Athletics
#17/17 Vols Look to Rebound on the Road at Kentucky
October 20, 2025 | Football
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 17/17 Tennessee heads back on the road for the second straight week, traveling north to face Kentucky under the lights of Kroger Field on Saturday night. Kickoff is slated for 7:45 p.m. ET on SEC Network.
The Volunteers aim to close the month of October with a winning record and secure bowl eligibility for a fifth consecutive season, a feat last accomplished from 2000-04. Saturday's game marks the 121st meeting in the border rivalry and the seventh straight night matchup in Lexington dating back to 2013.
Head coach Josh Heupel holds a perfect 4-0 record against the Wildcats during his tenure on Rocky Top, and the Vols own a 12-2 record following a loss under Heupel, including 1-0 this year.
Heupel opened his Monday press conference by stressing the importance of learning from last week's loss and quickly shifting focus toward another physical rivalry matchup.
"Obviously everybody is disappointed with the outcome from the other day, but whether you win or lose, you have to flip it forward, watch the video and learn from it," Heupel said. "That's what we have to do this week, getting ready to go play in a border war game, rivalry game. You look at these games historically, they've been really tight. We're playing a really good football team … another test inside of this league, on the road against a good football team."
The Vols face a Kentucky team coming off an overtime loss to Texas and seeking its first home win over Tennessee since 2017. Heupel said success away from Neyland Stadium starts with the fundamentals and staying poised through momentum swings.
"I think it starts with the everyday ordinary things," Heupel said. "Communication, not having pre-snap penalties, that's where it starts on the offensive side of the football … The momentum swings that naturally occur, being able to settle in mentally, physically and emotionally and go play the next play."
Full comments from Heupel's Monday press conference can be viewed below.Tennessee Football Press Conference | Oct. 20, 2025
Opening statement…
"Obviously everybody is disappointed with the outcome from the other day, but whether you win or lose, you have to flip it forward, watch the video and learn from it. That's what we have to do this week, getting ready to go play in a border war game, rivalry game. You look at these games historically, they've been really tight. We're playing a really good football team. You look at them Saturday against Texas, statistically won the game in about every way, just not on the scoreboard. They took it to overtime, so another test inside of this league, on the road against a good football team. It's one that we're looking forward to, and hopefully we'll see a lot of our fans make the trip up there to Lexington."
On Joey Aguilar's status this week…
"Obviously, couple of hits that Joey took (against Alabama), but he'll be ready to go this Saturday."
On the team's perception of Kentucky after its performance against Texas…
"They know they're going to play a good team every week inside of this league, first of all. Again, another road test. You can point to that game and see the quality of the opponent that we're playing."
On turning the page from a loss at Alabama to another road test and rivalry game at Kentucky…
"It's the nature of the game that we play. You have to be the same competitor every week, but also every day. It's why your routine matters, and getting ready and prepared matters. This is our next opportunity as a football team, and we have to continue to grow."
On addressing issues with penalties…
"Some of it comes from the details of what we're doing. A couple of things are alignments or catch points. It's what you're doing every single day in every drill. You put all of that together. When you have a penalty, it makes it tougher. You're giving them a 1st-and-5, changes the way the game is played. Or you're 2nd-and-15, changes the way the game is played. That's a part of what we showed and talked about today."
On the offensive line rotation against Alabama and balancing continuity…
"Continuity does matter. The positions that guys played in, that's how they trained. Your offensive line, very rarely in a year are five guys going to start and play every rep all year long. They cross-trained at different spots. Getting (David Sanders Jr.) back allows us the ability to move those guys around a little bit. I do think they have comfort in playing different spots, and communication is solid. Ultimately, there are a couple of things that we have to do better. I don't think that's directly correlated to guys moving. I think it's just timing and how we executed it."
On if the offensive line will continue to rotate throughout the season…
"Yeah, we'll have some rotation with our front five."
On Jaedon Harmon's progression…
"Ultimately, Jaedon has done a really good job on special teams. Proof of your product is in your preparation on the practice field, too. Jaedon is a guy that we love inside of our building, just want to see continued growth from him."
On Alabama limiting explosive plays for Tennessee's offense…
"Some of it is just the structure of what they're playing. Inverted two coverage with corners high and soft is going to limit (the explosive plays). That's why some of the stuff in the middle chunks were really good for us. Ultimately, we have to find a way to create more explosives."
On DeSean Bishop's production over the past two weeks…
"He made a couple of elite cuts, making people miss to have extended long runs. He has done a good job of pressing it. The first outside zone play, (Lance Heard) does a great job of handling the edge of the defense so we're able to get around it. Next one, we cut up inside and make somebody miss. DeSean – I was just talking about being the same competitor every single day – you know exactly what you're getting from him. Guys that do that continue to get better. That's been DeSean's journey in college football and this season, too."
On missed tackles in the second half against Alabama…
"Some of them, we're in a bad body position. Some of them, we just don't wrap up and ultimately make the play. We have to find a way to get them down and make that play."
On the challenge of winning on the road in the SEC…
"I think it starts with the everyday ordinary things. Communication, not having pre-snap penalties – I think that's where it starts on the offensive side of the football. The nature of the game, it's 11-on-11 between the white lines, but all of your players being able to be in the present and just go play the next play. The momentum swings that naturally occur, being able to settle in mentally, physically and emotionally and go play the next play."
On the impact of mistakes on the road…
"I don't think we've played perfect at home either. I could take you in there and watch the tape. There are so many controllables that we control that can change the way the game is played. You also understand that this game is never going to be perfect either."
On the team's energy on the sidelines during games…
"I told them this morning. I love the way we continue to compete and play. We have to play smarter. That's in alignments, assignments, execution, all of those things. Obviously, end of the first half when momentum swings, our ability to reset at halftime, come out and compete in the third quarter. I'll take that from that group every day. We have to execute better, but ultimately, this group competes hard and plays hard."
On specific challenges presented by Kentucky…
"I think their offensive line, their experience and physicality is a big part of their identity. Defensively, again big and strong up front. Multiple in front structure, coverage rotation. They're a good football team. Played a tough schedule. You always do inside of this league, but they've played a tough one."
On capitalizing on turnovers in sudden change situations…
"Have not executed in that situation. It's nothing extravagant. It's us doing our job, being in the present and executing. The other day, we recognize a structure late, we've already given an indicator to the center trying to check the play, and that's how an errant snap happens and all of a sudden you're behind the chains. Ultimately, we just have to be a little bit better. We have to take advantage of those situations, too. We're down 10 and have a chance to close the gap."
The Volunteers aim to close the month of October with a winning record and secure bowl eligibility for a fifth consecutive season, a feat last accomplished from 2000-04. Saturday's game marks the 121st meeting in the border rivalry and the seventh straight night matchup in Lexington dating back to 2013.
Head coach Josh Heupel holds a perfect 4-0 record against the Wildcats during his tenure on Rocky Top, and the Vols own a 12-2 record following a loss under Heupel, including 1-0 this year.
Heupel opened his Monday press conference by stressing the importance of learning from last week's loss and quickly shifting focus toward another physical rivalry matchup.
"Obviously everybody is disappointed with the outcome from the other day, but whether you win or lose, you have to flip it forward, watch the video and learn from it," Heupel said. "That's what we have to do this week, getting ready to go play in a border war game, rivalry game. You look at these games historically, they've been really tight. We're playing a really good football team … another test inside of this league, on the road against a good football team."
The Vols face a Kentucky team coming off an overtime loss to Texas and seeking its first home win over Tennessee since 2017. Heupel said success away from Neyland Stadium starts with the fundamentals and staying poised through momentum swings.
"I think it starts with the everyday ordinary things," Heupel said. "Communication, not having pre-snap penalties, that's where it starts on the offensive side of the football … The momentum swings that naturally occur, being able to settle in mentally, physically and emotionally and go play the next play."
Full comments from Heupel's Monday press conference can be viewed below.
Tennessee Football Press Conference | Oct. 20, 2025
Head Coach Josh Heupel
Opening statement…"Obviously everybody is disappointed with the outcome from the other day, but whether you win or lose, you have to flip it forward, watch the video and learn from it. That's what we have to do this week, getting ready to go play in a border war game, rivalry game. You look at these games historically, they've been really tight. We're playing a really good football team. You look at them Saturday against Texas, statistically won the game in about every way, just not on the scoreboard. They took it to overtime, so another test inside of this league, on the road against a good football team. It's one that we're looking forward to, and hopefully we'll see a lot of our fans make the trip up there to Lexington."
On Joey Aguilar's status this week…
"Obviously, couple of hits that Joey took (against Alabama), but he'll be ready to go this Saturday."
On the team's perception of Kentucky after its performance against Texas…
"They know they're going to play a good team every week inside of this league, first of all. Again, another road test. You can point to that game and see the quality of the opponent that we're playing."
On turning the page from a loss at Alabama to another road test and rivalry game at Kentucky…
"It's the nature of the game that we play. You have to be the same competitor every week, but also every day. It's why your routine matters, and getting ready and prepared matters. This is our next opportunity as a football team, and we have to continue to grow."
On addressing issues with penalties…
"Some of it comes from the details of what we're doing. A couple of things are alignments or catch points. It's what you're doing every single day in every drill. You put all of that together. When you have a penalty, it makes it tougher. You're giving them a 1st-and-5, changes the way the game is played. Or you're 2nd-and-15, changes the way the game is played. That's a part of what we showed and talked about today."
On the offensive line rotation against Alabama and balancing continuity…
"Continuity does matter. The positions that guys played in, that's how they trained. Your offensive line, very rarely in a year are five guys going to start and play every rep all year long. They cross-trained at different spots. Getting (David Sanders Jr.) back allows us the ability to move those guys around a little bit. I do think they have comfort in playing different spots, and communication is solid. Ultimately, there are a couple of things that we have to do better. I don't think that's directly correlated to guys moving. I think it's just timing and how we executed it."
On if the offensive line will continue to rotate throughout the season…
"Yeah, we'll have some rotation with our front five."
On Jaedon Harmon's progression…
"Ultimately, Jaedon has done a really good job on special teams. Proof of your product is in your preparation on the practice field, too. Jaedon is a guy that we love inside of our building, just want to see continued growth from him."
On Alabama limiting explosive plays for Tennessee's offense…
"Some of it is just the structure of what they're playing. Inverted two coverage with corners high and soft is going to limit (the explosive plays). That's why some of the stuff in the middle chunks were really good for us. Ultimately, we have to find a way to create more explosives."
On DeSean Bishop's production over the past two weeks…
"He made a couple of elite cuts, making people miss to have extended long runs. He has done a good job of pressing it. The first outside zone play, (Lance Heard) does a great job of handling the edge of the defense so we're able to get around it. Next one, we cut up inside and make somebody miss. DeSean – I was just talking about being the same competitor every single day – you know exactly what you're getting from him. Guys that do that continue to get better. That's been DeSean's journey in college football and this season, too."
On missed tackles in the second half against Alabama…
"Some of them, we're in a bad body position. Some of them, we just don't wrap up and ultimately make the play. We have to find a way to get them down and make that play."
On the challenge of winning on the road in the SEC…
"I think it starts with the everyday ordinary things. Communication, not having pre-snap penalties – I think that's where it starts on the offensive side of the football. The nature of the game, it's 11-on-11 between the white lines, but all of your players being able to be in the present and just go play the next play. The momentum swings that naturally occur, being able to settle in mentally, physically and emotionally and go play the next play."
On the impact of mistakes on the road…
"I don't think we've played perfect at home either. I could take you in there and watch the tape. There are so many controllables that we control that can change the way the game is played. You also understand that this game is never going to be perfect either."
On the team's energy on the sidelines during games…
"I told them this morning. I love the way we continue to compete and play. We have to play smarter. That's in alignments, assignments, execution, all of those things. Obviously, end of the first half when momentum swings, our ability to reset at halftime, come out and compete in the third quarter. I'll take that from that group every day. We have to execute better, but ultimately, this group competes hard and plays hard."
On specific challenges presented by Kentucky…
"I think their offensive line, their experience and physicality is a big part of their identity. Defensively, again big and strong up front. Multiple in front structure, coverage rotation. They're a good football team. Played a tough schedule. You always do inside of this league, but they've played a tough one."
On capitalizing on turnovers in sudden change situations…
"Have not executed in that situation. It's nothing extravagant. It's us doing our job, being in the present and executing. The other day, we recognize a structure late, we've already given an indicator to the center trying to check the play, and that's how an errant snap happens and all of a sudden you're behind the chains. Ultimately, we just have to be a little bit better. We have to take advantage of those situations, too. We're down 10 and have a chance to close the gap."
Players Mentioned
QB
/ Football
RB
/ Football
LB
/ Football
OL
/ Football
OL
/ FootballFB | Star Thomas Media Availability (10.20.25)
Monday, October 20
FB | DeSean Bishop Media Availability (10.20.25)
Monday, October 20
FB | Josh Heupel Press Conference (10.20.25)
Monday, October 20
FB | Jeremiah Telander Postgame at Alabama (10.18.25)
Sunday, October 19
