Tennessee's special teams were incredibly erratic against Georgia in 2006. Saturday, they provided the consistency they'd lacked all season.

After giving up kickoff and punt returns for touchdowns last year in Athens, the Vols held Georgia in check during a 35-14 win at Neyland Stadium.

Much of the credit has to go to junior punter Britton Colquitt, who kicked off for the first time this season. Colquitt was good for two touchbacks and was consistently dropping his kicks inside the 5-yard line.

"Britton is the difference," head coach Phillip Fulmer said. "We'd been hanging it 3.6 or 3.7 (seconds) and he kicks it up there 4.1 or 4.2 and where we need it to be kicked. We didn't coach it any better or any worse. The player made the difference."

That's exactly what the Vols needed, considering they were ranked 82nd in the nation in kickoff coverage before the Georgia game.

Colquitt hadn't handled kickoffs this season because of a pulled quadriceps in his kicking leg.

Kickoff coverage was just one example of UT's improved special teams. The Vols yielded only 5.5 yards on two punt returns against Georgia, after ranking last (118th) in the NCAA heading into Saturday's game.

UT unveiled a new spread punt formation against Georgia. Assistant coach Kurt Roper said the new formation allows his players to attack down the field sooner, instead of having to step back to maintain the line's integrity.

The Vols had given up two punt returns for a touchdown this season.

"Just trying to come up with ways to get guys tackled," Roper said. "You can get guys out faster."

Roper said the new look likely caught Georgia off guard. He wouldn't rule out returning to the traditional punt formation, but said it would be difficult to switch between the two during the season.

UT also provided a big play in special teams, blocking a punt in the second quarter that led to a touchdown.

Fulmer's Response: In his post-game press conference Fulmer gave a critique of a column written by John Pennington that appeared in Saturday's edition of the News Sentinel. Pennington's column included comments by a number of unnamed former UT players questioning player development, intensity in the strength program and practice philosophy.

"Ordinarily I'm a pretty big boy and can take and ignore almost anything," Fulmer said. "I thought it was an incredible cheap shot to say something about former players, unnamed players, talking about our program, particularly with a big game like this with a lot of prospects coming in.

"It hit a dang nerve and I don't appreciate it. I usually don't respond, but in this case I think our football team and our program deserve a response.

"I have relationships with the players who have been through this program and if they have something to say they can certainly say it to me (rather than) through a person who's never walked on our practice field or never been to a meeting or a press conference that I know of since I've been here.

"It was an incredible cheap shot is what it was."

Pennington, who is not a staff member of the News Sentinel, responded to Fulmer's comments with an e-mail late Saturday.

"I'm disappointed that Phillip Fulmer was upset by the column. But I stand by it. My job is not to report (either in The Sentinel or on my television show), it's to give an opinion.

"In having a number of former Vols talk to me about issues that they have seen, I thought that this was exactly the type of story that fans would be interested in hearing. I made no bones about the fact that this was one group's opinion. And I also pointed out very plainly that every player I spoke with believes in Coach Fulmer and believes he can fix the issues they've observed.

"As far as me being on-campus, I'm not a beat writer. I'm a columnist and a show host. Getting to like or dislike coaches does not help with objectivity. The analysts on my show provide nuts and bolts, I provide opinions. And anyone who has read my columns or seen my show knows that I try very hard to be objective and fair toward the Vols."

Injury Report: Freshman cornerback Brent Vinson left the game with an injured left shoulder. Defensive backs coach Larry Slade said he expected Vinson to be fine.

Eric Young had a head injury. His status is not yet known.

In Young’s absence, UT moved sophomore right guard Chris Scott to left tackle, replacing Scott with sophomore Jacques McClendon at right guard.

Slade Said He Would: Slade predicted on Tuesday that senior free safety Jonathan Hefney would play well against Georgia.

Hefney responded with an interception and two tackles.

“He works so hard and has so much pride, sooner or later he’s going to be Jonathan Hefney,” Slade said, “and he was that way today.”

Smith Has Last Laugh: UT Legends honoree Chuck Smith said he'd be smiling all the way back to Atlanta. The former defensive end a made a bet with one of his media friends in Georgia.

"It was a hell of a day for me," Smith said. "There’s a guy in Atlanta on TV who took an on-air public bet that if the 'Dogs won I would wear a red wig and have to sing their fight song, but if the 'Dogs lost, he had to put an orange wig on and sing 'Rocky Top' at the top of his lungs. It’s a great day."

Top Trio: Erik Ainge’s 165 passing yards against Georgia moved him past Andy Kelley (6,397) for third most passing yards in school history. Ainge now trails only Casey Clausen (9,707) and Peyton Manning (11,201).

Visitors: Former UT quarterbacks Tee Martin and Rick Clausen were in attendance Saturday.

© 2007, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.