Tennessee rolled up 523 yards – 112 more than Vandy’s 411 – to coast to a win in Neyland Stadium. Junior quarterback Joshua Dobbs connected with wide-open senior wide receiver Von Pearson for a 17-yard touchdown, and sophomore Aaron Medley’s extra point gave Tennessee a quick, 7-0 lead. Jalen Hurd rushed for more than 100 yards for the fifth time this year, finishing with 120 yards. UT is on a five-game winning streak is also Tennessee’s best since also winning the final five regular-season games in 2007. “Really that’s not our defense out there that played tonight”. Everything in our program is based off of finishing, and we’re learning how to finish.
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Hurd broke a 48-yard run and Medley salvaged the drive with his third field goal less than two minutes into the fourth period. Pearson and Dobbs also hooked up for a second touchdown during the third quarter. Then on Vanderbilt’s last offensive possession of the first half, Todd Kelly Jr. picked off a Kyle Shurmer pass in the flat to end a scoring threat by the Commodores. Ralph Webb led the Commodores offense with 149 rushing yards on 21 carries.
Tennessee was stopped on a goal-line fourth down play on the first drive of the second half, but Derek Barnett picked up a sack that resulted in a safety on the next drive. We couldn’t get to halftime before making adjustments. We knew who they were, and they weren’t any different than what we thought. “That was on us”, said Jones.
But that was as close as they would get. Sutton now has 467 yards on the year and two scores with a bowl game remaining.
“Again, we have a lot of momentum. That is a tribute to our staff, our players and their work ethic”. The entire list of bowl games will be announced on Sunday December 6 after all of the conference championship games are played. It was Sutton’s second return for a score this season and the first time since Terry Fair scored twice in 1978. The Dores were giving up 126 rushing yards per game.
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Sutton now has 625 returns yards, breaking the long-standing single-season record of 457 yards set by Bobby Majors in 1969. His previous best as a 46-yarder against Georgia in 2014. Outside of the safety, the Commodores scored a season-high of 28 points.
