Adams: Enough defense for some optimism

Photo by Saul Young
Buy this photo »

Southern Miss running back Tory Harrison is tackled by UT defensive end Xavier Mitchell on Saturday at Neyland Stadium.

The longer the game dragged on, the less of a drag it became for the Tennessee fans who stuck around for the full 3 1/2 hours at Neyland Stadium on Saturday evening.

Until the second half, they had no reason to feel any more optimistic about this season than they did after a 45-31 loss to Cal in the opener. They were rewarded for their patience.

The offense kept getting better. The defense finally showed up, albeit about six quarters late. Even the kick-coverage team became competent late in the fourth quarter.

And the Vols didn't just win. They won going away, turning a one-point halftime lead into a 39-19 victory over Southern Mississippi.

In many UT seasons, a 20-point victory over a Conference USA opponent might have evoked no more than a shrug from the UT crowd. But a humbling loss to Cal, followed by an inauspicious first half against the Golden Eagles, made the second-half performance worthy of a celebration.

UT defenders led the celebration. And you couldn't blame them for their animation after making routine tackles.

That defense was embarrassed in the loss to Cal. It didn't look that much better in the first half against USM, which was almost halfway to 500 yards after two quarters.

By then, a reasonable question for any UT fan: "Can we hold anyone under 30 points?"

Keep in mind USM has nowhere near the offensive weapons of Cal. Although quarterback Jeremy Young had a career-best 254 yards passing, he didn't remind anyone of Cal's Nate Longshore. Moreover, the Golden Eagles couldn't match the Golden Bears' speed or experience at wide receiver, and their offensive line wasn't nearly as formidable as the one UT faced in the season opener.

But USM's offense was good enough to gain 246 yards and score 16 points in the first half. At that point, the expectations for UT's defense were at ground zero.

In the second half, the same defense that seemed so inept for the first six quarters of the season, suddenly turned competent. It separated USM ball carriers from the football, made crucial third-down stops, sacked Young twice and recorded a safety.

You could see the defense's confidence growing with every possession. Meanwhile, hope was building in the crowd.

So maybe I shouldn't spoil things with a Florida reference. But you can't ignore the schedule. The Gators are next.

And just because the Vols held USM under 20 points doesn't mean they're capable of holding Florida under 40.

That's not as ominous as it might seem on first glance. As good as UT's second half was Saturday night, Florida's was just as bad.

After leading Troy 49-7 at half, the Gators gave up 24 points in the second half in winning 59-31. Sure, you could argue that the game was out of reach, and Florida's defense let up. But giving up 24 points in the second half against Troy is more than a let-up. It's a reminder that Florida lost nine defensive starters from last year's national championship team.

The Gators are unproven in the defensive line and the secondary. Remind you of anyone?

UT gave up 254 yards passing to a team that passed for more than 192 yards only once in 14 games last season. Florida gave up 283 yards passing to Troy.

So you have two teams with shaky defensive fronts and secondaries matched up against two hot quarterbacks.

UT quarterback Erik Ainge has completed 66.2 percent of his passes for 547 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions in two games. Florida quarterback Tim Tebow has completed 73.8 of his passes for 537 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions in two games.

Despite its second-half improvement, UT isn't ready for an offense as dynamic as Florida's. But maybe Florida's defense isn't ready for UT's offense, either.

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