Tennessee's defense already has given up more points than any in school history, but critics are firing more shots at the offense. How odd is that?

Perhaps the turnabout is appropriate in a college football season that has been unusual at every level - nationally, in the SEC and at UT.

A UT defense that began the season on its heels against Cal and that couldn't catch its breath against Florida ended the season by holding SEC champion and national championship contender LSU to one offensive touchdown.

Sure, it helped that LSU had to play without its injured No. 1 quarterback, Matt Flynn. For all his athleticism, backup quarterback Ryan Perrilloux is an absolute disaster when it comes to game and clock management.

But you can't argue that the defense at least improved over the course of the season. Now, fans seem more concerned about an offense that struggled more as the season went along.

Nonetheless, the offense still is averaging 33 points. Given this team's limitations, that shouldn't cause even the most critical fan to dispatch a moving van to offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe's home.

The Vols lost their best big-play running back, LaMarcus Coker, to off-the-field issues, and they didn't have a deep threat at wide receiver. They needed both.

They could have done just fine with an Eric Berry for the offense. He became a star in the secondary as a true freshman. No incoming recruit could fill that role at wide receiver.

If you want to fault the offensive coaches, they're vulnerable on a couple of counts: (1) Either failing to recruit an offensive player sufficiently talented to have an immediate impact or failing to develop young receivers quickly enough; (2) Not making the spread option an integral part of their offense.

In some ways, this offensive staff has excelled. In two years, Cutcliffe helped turn Erik Ainge into one of the SEC's best quarterbacks. You can blame Ainge all you want for his dreadful play in the fourth quarter of the SEC championship game loss to LSU, but he's UT's best pro prospect at the position since Peyton Manning.

Cutcliffe also deserves credit for game preparation. So does head coach Phillip Fulmer, who plays a role in that.

Consider what UT has done on its first possession in the last four games. In each of those games - against LSU, Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Arkansas - the Vols scored a touchdown on their first possession.

That doesn't happen by accident. In fact, it's almost Bill Walsh-like.

It shows that Cutcliffe and the rest of the offensive staff are finding opponents' weaknesses, then putting together a series of plays that will exploit those vulnerabilities. They won't lose that ability in the off-season. They just need to build on it.

We kid a lot on the News Sentinel's radio show, The Sports Page, about UT's "G-Gun" package. But the success of the spread offense in college football is no joke.

I'm not suggesting that UT has to become West Virginia or Florida. But it needs to use some version of the spread option in more than a cameo role.

Now is the perfect time. The Vols will have to break in a new quarterback next season anyway. So why not include the spread option in the transition?

Freshman wide receiver Gerald Jones, a former high school quarterback, apparently can handle the role. As a quarterback in the shotgun formation, he gained 39 yards on two carries against LSU in the SEC championship game.

That's a great average. That's not enough carries.

There's another advantage to using the spread option on a regular basis. It prepares your defense for an offense it's bound to encounter during the season.

And the biggest encounter for UT will come in the third game against Florida.

But wouldn't it be refreshing for UT to do more than follow a popular trend?

With that in mind, I introduce my fantasy UT offense, which would put both Jones and Berry in the shotgun formation.

Like Jones, Berry was an outstanding high school quarterback who is capable of passing as well as running. You think two running/passing threats in the same backfield wouldn't put pressure on a defense?

Berry, who has had an All-SEC-caliber season at strong safety, wouldn't have to move to offense full-time. Just give him three or four series in the same backfield with Jones.

Champ Bailey handled a two-way role at Georgia. So did you-know-who at Michigan. And so could Berry.

I've already done my part. I've named the formation.

No offense to Jones, but you would have to call it the "Wild Berry."

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

© 2007, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.