When R.L. Sanders was talking football with his son, Randy, last spring, he asked a question that is more relevant now than it was then.

"Can you win with Rick (Clausen) at quarterback?" R.L. asked Randy, UT's offensive coordinator.

"I really believe we can, Dad," Randy said.

So R.L. might have been more confident than the average UT football fan when the second of the Vols' two freshman quarterbacks suffered a regular-season-ending injury three weeks ago.

An offensive coordinator is only as good as his last call with fans. But this fan is a father, and he doesn't second-guess his son about football.

"He knows football," R.L. said after UT's 37-31 victory over Kentucky on Saturday at Neyland Stadium. "He has been studying it since he was this high."

As R.L. held his right hand a few feet above the ground, his grownup son was answering questions a few feet away. On the other side of the interview room, a former third-string quarterback was doing the same thing.

You can't separate Clausen's success from Randy Sanders', any more than you could separate the success of freshman quarterbacks Erik Ainge and Brent Schaeffer from Sanders'.

Maybe Sanders has had better seasons as a play caller, but he has never had a better year as a coach.

He has prepared three different inexperienced quarterbacks to start games. He has won with two freshmen and a former third-stringer with virtually no college experience. He has won with a running game that has run hot and cold and an offensive line that injuries have changed from one week to the next.

And he has won when the defense has gone belly-up - last week against Vanderbilt and again in the first half Saturday against Kentucky.

After the Vols beat Vanderbilt 38-33, Sanders was asked how he would have felt if had known he would have had to score in the 30s.

"I would have been nervous," he said. "You never know how someone is going to play when the lights come on."

But he thought he knew. He had studied and talked football with Clausen. And he also knew how Rick's brother, Casey, had stepped up in games.

So, yes, he believed he could win with Rick Clausen. And he was right.

Together, they ran an offense that totaled 606 yards against the Wildcats. Never mind that Kentucky has the worst defense in the SEC. Even the worst defenses don't routinely give up 600 yards.

Clausen completed 26 of 41 passes for 349 yards. He threw a couple of crucial interceptions but also threw two touchdown passes.

Even when Clausen was rushed into the lineup after Ainge was hurt against Notre Dame, he didn't look out of place. His poise is a credit to both him and his coach.

This hasn't been a comfortable season for a quarterback coach. But the coach has helped make all three quarterbacks feel comfortable.

Rick was asked what his brother told him about Sanders when Rick was still at LSU.

"He said he (Sanders) gets a real good feel for what you can and cannot do," Rick said. "He knows my strengths and my weaknesses. He tries to keep me out of the plays I don't do so well and maximize the plays I do well."

He also kept Rick involved. When Ainge and Schaeffer were taking all the snaps, Sanders was still taking time with Clausen.

"He's always asked my opinion at halftime about what I saw," Rick said. "I think it's just another set of eyes."

Said Sanders: "I respected his insight and awareness of football. In a lot of ways, Rick is like a coach because he understands and can see things from my perspective.

"But he's still got a union card as a player. So when Erik and Brent were playing, he let me know what was really going on with them."

From Schaeffer to Ainge to Clausen, UT's ever-changing quarterback position might have one change left.

Schaeffer will return to practice Monday and is expected to play Saturday against Auburn in the SEC championship game. Although Clausen will get most of the work in practice and is scheduled to start, Schaeffer could give the Vols a change of pace against the Tigers.

"I think anytime the defense has more to prepare for, the better off you are," Sanders said.

Preparing two quarterbacks also puts a greater workload on Sanders. But by now, he's used to it.

Sports editor John Adams may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knews.com.