It had been a long time coming, was way overdue in fact. Still, better the first Saturday in October than never.

Early in the second half Saturday night, when Tennessee hit two deep pass plays, the second for a touchdown, coach Phillip Fulmer felt the energy jolting the sideline.

"At that moment,'' he recalled Tuesday, "I said, 'Now we're ready. Now we've arrived. Now we can start clicking.' ''

Only they didn't.

Unless you count that clicking noise when you try to start your car and either the battery or the starter motor are stone-cold dead.

Tennessee's offense isn't stone-cold dead. It is, however, puttering along in the slow lane, much to the frustration of fans, coaches and players alike.

A change at quarterback earned favorable reviews against Northern Illinois and yet an unconvincing 13-9 win raised more offensive questions than it answered.

Just as the $700 billion bail-out is proving no quick fix for the economic mess, Nick Stephens wasn't the magic dust to immediately transform Tennessee's offense from a pumpkin into a golden carriage with six white horses.

The Vols head to Georgia on Saturday with an offense ranked 97th nationally in yardage, 106th in scoring, 100th in third-down conversions and 104th in red-zone success.

Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you like the play?

Some see an offense that lacks speed and sabotages itself with poor execution.

The coaches are more optimistic, as they should be. They see an offense that's one block or one nifty move away from making good things happen.

"It's been physical breakdowns at different times by different positions,'' Fulmer said, "and something, thank goodness, that is fixable.''

This would be a good week to get it fixed. However, it's not that easy or would be done already.

Fulmer and Dave Clawson, the offensive coordinator Fulmer hired last winter, are in agreement that the problem is not the new scheme that Clawson brought from Richmond.

That said, they don't dispute that there are growing pains. Clawson said the team's learning curve at his several professional stops has been varied.

"My first year at Villanova we went from averaging 16 points a game to 32,'' he said. "At other places, it's taken a second season.''

Certainly, Jonathan Crompton's struggles in the first four games at quarterback were an obstacle. Stephens managed his first start well and gives the offense hope on which to build.

That's fine, but Clawson's system, indeed any system, is based on playmakers and putting them in position to make plays. To win one-on-one battles, in short.

"We need to get more big plays,'' Clawson said. "We need to get the ball in space. We need to make people miss.

"The drives I like are the one-play, 52-yard drives where the guys are high-fiving each other. We need more of those drives.''

Doesn't everybody.

He was alluding to the Stephens-to-Denarius Moore pass that produced the only touchdown Saturday, the one that fooled Fulmer into thinking Tennessee had started clicking.

Those types of big plays have been scarce for the Vols in 2008. That could be due to lack of execution.

Or, perhaps UT doesn't have as many difference-maker guys as it's had in the past. Or, perhaps they're there and will emerge in time if given more of a shot.

Asked if Tennessee has enough weapons, Clawson and Fulmer say yes.

"At times,'' Clawson said carefully, "we have isolations that we're not winning. ... I thought last week we were closer.

"I thought there were a couple of chances where we were an arm-tackle away from breaking a big one.''

That's the difference between clicking and almost clicking. It's a big, big difference.

Mike Strange may be reached at 865-342-6276 or strangem@knoxnews.com.

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.