Tennessee fans saw it against California last Saturday. The Vols saw it weeks before.

It happened on August 19. It was the scrimmage that so many within UT's program had been waiting for. UT's offense finally turned the corner.

Junior quarterback Erik Ainge was 17-of-26 for 196 yards and a touchdown. Junior receiver Robert Meachem caught four passes for 74 yards and a score. Five other Vols caught three or more passes.

"Making plays, being confident, knowing where to go with the ball," said offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe as he recounted the positives. "We weren't perfect by any means, but it was the best we'd done since I'd been here."

The scrimmage helped UT to a 35-18 win over California last week. The Vols host Air Force on Saturday.

The impact of UT's second major scrimmage wasn't limited to the time between the whistles. The showing created a message that lingered for the remainder of preseason.

"With that," Cutcliffe said, "we were able to show the players that tape and show them that if you do this, if you practice that way, if you play that way, this is what's going to happen."

Cutcliffe admitted that UT needed a practice like they had on Aug. 19. Trying to gain confidence while going against a talented, aggressive defense was plenty challenging.

"We had been pushed around a pretty good bit," Cutcliffe said.

The uplifting moment was just in time for Ainge after a season of frustration and an offseason of anxiety.

"That scrimmage helped me out a lot," Ainge said, "because I felt I was back to being me, playing football."

UT's offense was in midseason form last week as it hammered Cal. Maybe that wasn't the season opener after all.

"Those scrimmages were games," Ainge said. "We treated those like games, especially those first two scrimmages.

"They were telling us what to eat, what to drink, 'Don't put this in your body, don't put that in your body. Get your rest. We've got a game on Saturday.' "

Like a game, the Aug. 19 scrimmage was wide open. That meant UT could use any defense. Blitzes were the norm.

The scrimmage parameters also meant Ainge was fair game. The green, non-contact jersey was off.

"I was able to get hit, roughed up a little and have to go back in there," Ainge said. "It really was like a game."

Roughed up or not, Ainge was there. He was making plays with his teammates, all the while impressing Cutcliffe.

"The things that got him excited were us doing the little things," Ainge said of his quarterbacks coach. "What wins football games is doing the little things right every single play.

"In that scrimmage, we really started doing the little things right. I think that's probably what made him pretty happy."

The offensive explosion was short lived. Just three days later, UT's offense struggled in its final scrimmage of the preseason.

"I don't think we handled success very well," Cutcliffe said. "Maybe it was good that it happened (the offense struggled again) because we really got their attention again right after that."

UT's players have seemed attentive ever since. The Vols shot to a 35-0 lead midway through the third quarter against Cal.

Will the Vols be better suited to handle offensive success this time around?

"We better be," Cutcliffe said. "Everybody knows in this business, you can't feel very good for very long."

It may seem strange that UT's offense seemed so explosive against Cal but struggled for most of preseason practice. Ainge has an idea why that was the case.

"Maybe one of the reasons our offense didn't look terrific in every scrimmage," Ainge said with a smile, "is because we've got a pretty-dang-good defense."