Alabama-Birmingham played soft pass defense, willing to give Tennessee the short completions. Florida played aggressive man-to-man, daring the Vols to make plays throwing deep.

Tennessee wasn't adept at attacking either, which raises questions as to what defensive approach LSU will choose Saturday night at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge.

"If I was sitting back looking at us, I'd say it's pretty much dealer's choice,'' UT offensive coordinator Randy Sanders said Tuesday.

"I don't know which one I'd go with, but I'd feel pretty good about going with either one.''

Two games into the season, the Vols are bottom-dwellers in SEC passing statistics. They rank ninth in passing yardage and 12th in passing efficiency.

But that's only half the story.

They also rank ninth in rushing and total yardage, last in scoring (12.0 points a game) and are 0-for-4 in fourth-down conversion attempts.

"We don't have the opportunity to sit around and cry over spilt milk,'' UT coach Phillip Fulmer said.

"I still feel very strongly we have the potential to be very good offensively.''

At various times in the preseason, Fulmer was effusively optimistic about the various components of UT's offense: the line; the running backs; the receivers; the quarterbacks.

So far, nothing has jelled.

Fulmer and Sanders hope a decision to junk a two-quarterback system will produce consistency. Sophomore Erik Ainge will be the full-time No. 1 man, with Rick Clausen sticking on the sideline.

To date, Ainge has had 13 possessions, Clausen eight.

"In hindsight,'' said Sanders, "that disrupted us a little more than we thought it would going in.

"Now, Erik knows it's his game to go out there and play.''

It's likely the quarterback shuffle adversely affected the receivers, who were plagued by dropped passes against UAB. At Florida, they struggled to get open and when they did, they were often overthrown by the quarterbacks.

While the running game hasn't been dominant, senior tailback Gerald Riggs Jr. has averaged a healthy 4.9 yards per carry.

Sanders and Fulmer hope he will put together two effective halves at LSU.

Meanwhile, they're fielding questions as to why Riggs wasn't used more in the second half at Florida.

He averaged 6.6 yards per carry in the first half. Six of his 11 rushes went for 8 or more yards.

"At halftime,'' Sanders said, "we felt the second half was ours, that we were right on the verge of taking over the game.''

The fumbled punt return robbed the offense of its first possession of the second half. Florida also adjusted its run defense.

"They were daring us to throw the football,'' said Fulmer, "stacking everybody at the line of scrimmage.''

In the second half Riggs averaged 2.1 yards on six carries.

By the time UT had finished two fruitless possessions, the Gators led 16-7 with 8 minutes to play.

Riggs didn't touch the ball again as the Vols, down two scores, went to the air.

"The first game we didn't run it well,'' said Sanders, "but we threw it pretty decent. If we don't drop balls we threw it pretty well against UAB.

"Last week we ran it pretty good. Hopefully, our running game is solidified and we get the passing game back on track to where we thought it would be.''

If not, it'll be dealer's choice for the LSU defense. And the deck will be stacked against Tennessee turning around its season.