Wildcat needed a bigger dose of Cobb

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Tennessee cornerback Eric Berry (14) jumps to hit Kentucky wide receiver Randall Cobb as he dives for a touchdown on Saturday, Nov. 28, 2009 at Commonwealth Stadium in Lexington, Ky.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Tennessee hardly de-clawed the wildcat formation in a 30-24 overtime win over Kentucky on Saturday night. But the Vols weren't exactly mauled either.

Randall Cobb looked unstoppable at times when he lined up as quarterback, heading up the option, which was balanced with an efficient passing attack.

Yet he hardly took over the game. The sophomore ran 18 times for 101 yards and a touchdown and completed one of three passes for 31 yards.

Yet the option was also effective when Cobb handed the ball off or pitched it. Kentucky finished with 161 rushing yards, many of which were gained out of the wildcat.

Coach Lane Kiffin said UT defended the attack better than in the past and the Vols clearly deserve some of the credit.

But many were left scratching their heads, wondering why the former Alcoa High School star didn't have more opportunities behind center.

"That surprised me a little because Cobb was pretty effective," UT linebacker Rico McCoy said. "That's where most of their yards came from. I guess they wanted to switch it up a little. That's cool. I won't complain."

Neither did Kiffin.

"It's something we've struggled with," he said. "It's something they were moving the ball with at times. I was kind of surprised they didn't go to it in overtime."

Still, the Vols were at their best the longer the game went. UT allowed 187 yards in the first half, 80 in the second and pushed the Wildcats back six yards in their overtime possession.

"We played decent ball in the first half," McCoy said. "We came back out and played Tennessee defense."

Halftime adjustments were a small factor, McCoy and Kiffin said. The real difference was weathering the storm fueled by a team intent on breaking a 24-game losing streak.

"Those guys were fired up," McCoy said. "They really wanted it. They had their minds set that they were going to win this one."

Saturday's game marked the return of freshman safety Janzen Jackson, who had charges of attempted armed robbery dropped on Monday. Jackson registered a key sack and two tackles.

"I thought Janzen played really well," Kiffin said. "He was out there hitting. He had a great look in his eye today. He was all over the place on special teams. It was good to have him back.

"That's a significant player. It's hard to realize how much that's affected us, not having him. Even though he's a free safety, he saves us a bunch of plays. And great players play better around great players. When you put another great player in that huddle, they look around and are more confident."

UT had other familiar faces in the defensive huddle. Defensive ends Ben Martin and Chris Walker played despite being held out for much of practice last week with a hip and elbow injury, respectively.

Walker had two tackles while Martin forced a fumble and batted down a pass.

"So many significant plays by the defense down the stretch," a relieved Kiffin said.

© 2009, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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