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Tennessee Football THROTTLES Furman & then Something SURPRISING Happened! | Vols · SEC Football Addiction

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: What's up Vols.
• 0:01
  Speaker 2: Thank you for joining us here on sec football addiction.
• 0:05
  Speaker 2: Your game wraps up against Furman a little delayed in
• 0:08
  Speaker 2: this because I had to go check.
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Out what my guy sports talk.
• 0:10
  Speaker 2: Jay had to say about this game wall to wall
• 0:13
  Speaker 2: action in college football today.
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: I have been a complete degenerate. Well, that's not true.
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: I took my kids out to see a movie this morning. The, uh,
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: Anniversary of cars. My four-year-old was absolutely obsessed, but a
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: good game for Tennessee today. We are presented by prize picks.
• 0:27
  Speaker 2: We're all new users who play a $ 5 lineup and
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• 0:32
  Speaker 2: H M a. Let's talk about this game today. I
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  Speaker 2: don't know how many questions people had about this Tennessee offense,
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  Speaker 2: but if there were any lingering questions because of a
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  Speaker 2: true freshman starting quarterback, I think they're all answered right now.
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  Speaker 2: And I understand the opponent. I won't try and overhype
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  Speaker 2: a win against Furman. They don't necessarily belong on the
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: same field as Tennessee. So everything I'll say, I will
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  Speaker 2: say maybe take with a slight grain of salt. But
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  Speaker 2: I do think heading into Saturday, there was a real
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  Speaker 2: uncertainty in Knoxville because a true freshman making his first
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: career start is still a big deal no matter who's
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  Speaker 2: on the other sideline. A coordinator running the defense for
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  Speaker 2: the very first time is still a question that has
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  Speaker 2: to be answered. A quarterback who didn't necessarily think that
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  Speaker 2: he would take the first college snaps of his career
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  Speaker 2: as a true freshman and A lot of questions to
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  Speaker 2: be answered, but yet still over 100,000 people showed up anyway.
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  Speaker 2: And Faison Brandon gave every single one of them a
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  Speaker 2: reason to believe. Tennessee 56, Furman 9, final score. But
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  Speaker 2: the score barely tells the story here. Let's jump into
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: what actually happened. The opening drive or two told you
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  Speaker 2: everything you needed to know about how the Vols wanted
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  Speaker 2: to attack this game. Tennessee's defense forces a quick three
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  Speaker 2: and out to open things up. Furman ran three plays.
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  Speaker 2: They lost four yards and then punted. And then Faison
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  Speaker 2: Brandon jogged onto the field for the first offensive snap
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  Speaker 2: of his collegiate career.
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  Speaker 1: No hesitation.
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  Speaker 2: Four completions on his first five passes, including a first-down
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  Speaker 2: connection with Mike Matthews. He tucked the ball once and
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  Speaker 2: ran it himself. He had an eight-play, 60-yard drive capped
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  Speaker 2: off by a 17-yard touchdown pass. Tennessee up 7-0. It's
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  Speaker 2: 10 minutes into the game. Brandon's first career touchdown pass,
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  Speaker 2: one he'll never forget. And honestly, that touchdown was maybe
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  Speaker 2: one of the least impressive things that he did all day.
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  Speaker 2: A little slow to end the first quarter. It took
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  Speaker 2: a little time for them to really get up and humming.
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  Speaker 2: But then once it got humming, it got humming. I
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  Speaker 2: enjoyed Sports Talk Jay's reaction. I liked seeing the joy
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  Speaker 2: on his face because I know what last year felt like.
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  Speaker 2: I know what this offseason has felt like. And so
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  Speaker 2: it was cool to see that. A six-yard playoff. touchdown
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  Speaker 2: run on an option keeper, a seven yard scramble on
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  Speaker 2: a quarterback, draw a 55 yard touchdown strike to Mike Matthews.
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  Speaker 2: Then for good measure, a 57 yard touchdown to Matthews again,
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  Speaker 2: his final stat line, 13 of 17, 226 yards, three touchdowns,
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  Speaker 2: no picks. He had 10 carries, I believe 68 yards.
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  Speaker 2: If I remember that correctly, yeah, 68 and two more
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  Speaker 2: touchdowns on the ground, five touchdowns in your debut. in
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  Speaker 2: his first career start. And again, I know the opponent.
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  Speaker 2: Let's put that number into context because I think it
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  Speaker 2: deserves some. Brandon became the fourth Tennessee quarterback since 1995
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  Speaker 2: to throw three touchdown passes and rush for two more
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  Speaker 2: in the same game. The other two or three who
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  Speaker 2: did that, sorry, Joshua Dobbs, Joe Milton, Justin Worley. That's
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  Speaker 2: the company that Faison Brandon just walked into. And the
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  Speaker 2: five total touchdowns ties the Tennessee freshman record for any
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  Speaker 2: player at any position. Clawson did it back in 2000.
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  Speaker 2: Bray did it in 2010. And now Brandon's name sits
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  Speaker 2: right next to them. And he did it as an
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  Speaker 2: 18-year-old making his very first start. And that's the other
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  Speaker 2: piece of this that's almost hard to process. Brandon turned
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  Speaker 2: 18 back in June. He became the youngest quarterback to
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  Speaker 2: ever start a game for Tennessee. 18 years, three months,
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  Speaker 2: and four days old when he took the first snap.
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  Speaker 2: He's also the first true freshman to start a Tennessee
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  Speaker 2: opener since 2004. an 18-year-old walked into a sold-out Neyland
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  Speaker 2: Stadium and looked like he'd been doing this for years. Again,
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  Speaker 2: opponent considered, but I do think we need to understand
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  Speaker 2: who the quarterback was for Tennessee today and what all
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  Speaker 2: this means. Before I go on, I will just very
• 4:40
  Speaker 2: quickly give some love to Alumni Hall. If you're shopping
• 4:43
  Speaker 2: for Tennessee gear, make sure you're doing it with Alumni Hall.
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: CFA 15 will save you 15% online or in-store against
• 4:50
  Speaker 2: CFA 15. Thank you to Alumni Hall for their support.
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  Speaker 2: Here's what stood out to me watching this game. It
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  Speaker 2: was not just his arm. It was the legs. And
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  Speaker 2: I was forced to talk. Jay talked about this a
• 5:01
  Speaker 2: little bit in his recap show. Everybody knew that Brandon
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  Speaker 2: could throw it. That's why he beat out McIntyre for
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  Speaker 2: the job in the first place. And I think we
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  Speaker 2: all thought, man, that athleticism is probably there, but the
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  Speaker 2: way he moved in this game, the option keeper, the
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  Speaker 2: quarterback draw, the ability to extend plays when the pocket
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  Speaker 2: wasn't perfect.
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  Speaker 1: It's a different gear entirely.
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  Speaker 2: Coaches and teammates have been raving about his mobility in
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  Speaker 2: fall camp. However, fans hadn't seen it translate to a
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  Speaker 2: live setting yet, and you always wonder about the mobility
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  Speaker 2: in camp because you know those defenders aren't allowed to
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  Speaker 2: touch anybody. Well, Furman was allowed to touch somebody today,
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  Speaker 2: and they really didn't do a very good job of it.
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  Speaker 1: However, fans have now seen it.
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  Speaker 2: And if you're Josh Heupel, I think it changes things
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  Speaker 2: because a quarterback who can beat you with his legs
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  Speaker 2: in the red zone is a nightmare for opposing defensive
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  Speaker 2: coordinators to prepare for. It's another layer to an offense
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  Speaker 2: that was already one of the most explosive units in
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  Speaker 2: the country under Josh Heupel.
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  Speaker 1: Now, again, was it against an FCS team?
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  Speaker 2: Sure. Furman's not walking into Neyland and hanging with this
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  Speaker 2: roster on talent alone. But you don't fake five touchdowns.
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  Speaker 2: You don't fake that kind of poise in your first
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  Speaker 2: real test in front of 100,000 people. Whatever Brandon showed
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  Speaker 2: on Saturday, I think is real. And I think it's
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  Speaker 2: going to be must-watch television for the rest of this season.
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  Speaker 2: Let's go to the other side of the ball for
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  Speaker 2: a moment because Tennessee's defense had a statement of its
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  Speaker 2: own to make. Jim Knowles took over as defensive coordinator
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  Speaker 2: this offseason, and the first impression was exactly what Tennessee
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  Speaker 2: fans wanted to see.
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  Speaker 1: It started before the offense ever even took the field.
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  Speaker 2: On Furman's very first play from scrimmage, there was a
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  Speaker 2: blowup in the backfield, an eight-yard sack. It set the
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  Speaker 2: tone immediately. But the name of the day on defense
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  Speaker 2: was Xavier Gilliman. Three sacks, five tackles for loss, six
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  Speaker 2: total tackles. He lived in Furman's backfield all afternoon. Three
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  Speaker 2: sacks in a single game is the most from a
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  Speaker 2: Tennessee player since Daryl Taylor put up four against Kentucky
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  Speaker 2: back in 2018. That's the benchmark now. And Gilliam matched
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  Speaker 2: it in his first game under a brand new coordinator.
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  Speaker 2: For the game, Knoll's defense... held Furman to 43 passing
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  Speaker 2: yards on 50% completion percentage and 178 yards on the ground.
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  Speaker 2: A lot of that coming in late garbage time. Tennessee
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  Speaker 2: with over 600, Furman with just a smidge over 200
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  Speaker 2: total yards. It's not a typo. I didn't misread something there.
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  Speaker 2: Tennessee nearly tripled up Furman in total offense. Now look,
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  Speaker 2: first game jitters happened on both sides. Tennessee's offensive line
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  Speaker 2: struggled some in the first quarter, and Furman actually got
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  Speaker 2: the game's only sack of Brandon early. But once the
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  Speaker 2: Vols found their rhythm, this game turned into exactly what
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  Speaker 2: everybody expected on paper.
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  Speaker 1: It was a one-sided beatdown.
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  Speaker 2: It was powered by a defense that looked completely comfortable
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  Speaker 2: in a system on day one.
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  Speaker 1: We are still considering the opponent.
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  Speaker 2: I continue to mention that because I know somebody in
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  Speaker 2: the comments is going to give me grief for, well,
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  Speaker 2: it was just Furman. Hey, look, you go out and
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  Speaker 2: you win the way you're supposed to. Take it from
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  Speaker 2: an FSU fan, you don't want to be struggling with
• 8:13
  Speaker 2: bad teams. It's a much better feeling to be where
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  Speaker 2: you guys are right now. I think there's another storyline
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  Speaker 2: that deserves its own moment that we need to talk
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  Speaker 2: about today, too, because it's easy to miss in a
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  Speaker 2: 56-9 blowout. Once the outcome was firmly decided, backup quarterback
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  Speaker 2: George McIntyre got his own chance to make an impression
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  Speaker 2: in And he came in and went four for five
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  Speaker 2: for 51 yards and capped that off with a touchdown
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  Speaker 2: pass of his own. First career touchdown pass for McIntyre.
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  Speaker 2: First career touchdown reception for Keyes. Two more freshmen and
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  Speaker 2: backups getting their moment in a game that was already decided.
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  Speaker 2: And I think that matters more than people realize. Depth
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  Speaker 2: matters later in this year. And Tennessee was able to
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  Speaker 2: get a live look at what its QB2 and one
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  Speaker 2: of its youngest right receivers could do in live reps.
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  Speaker 2: No practice, but also no pressure attached to the result.
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  Speaker 2: And then because Tennessee wasn't quite done stat padding the
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  Speaker 2: box score, Justin Baker capped the scoring with a 73-yard
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  Speaker 2: touchdown run, the longest run by a Tennessee player since
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  Speaker 2: Jalen Wright's 82-yarder against UConn back in 2023. Furman got
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  Speaker 2: one final answer, a 23-yard touchdown run from Isaiah Davis
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  Speaker 2: to make it 49-9, but Baker's house call put the
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  Speaker 2: exclamation point on the afternoon, 56-9. So what do we
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  Speaker 2: actually take away from this one? I'm going to start here.
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  Speaker 2: Josh Eipel is now 9-0 in season openers as a
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  Speaker 2: head coach, 3 at UCF, 6 at Tennessee.
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  Speaker 1: That streak is not an accident.
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  Speaker 2: I understand who some of the competition is, but Heupel's
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  Speaker 2: team shows up ready in week one, year after year,
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  Speaker 2: and that continued on Saturday. I wouldn't have included that
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  Speaker 2: stat had this been a 34-27 win. but because you
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  Speaker 2: dominated and you opened up the way you were supposed to,
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  Speaker 2: I felt like it was important. Tennessee also improved to
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  Speaker 2: 22-4 in non-conference games under Hypel, including a 20-1 mark
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  Speaker 2: in the regular season specifically. When this program plays outside
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  Speaker 2: of the SEC, it wins consistently and usually pretty convincingly.
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  Speaker 2: But the real headline walks out of Neyland Stadium at
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  Speaker 2: 1-0 with a five-touchdown debut and a legitimate case as
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  Speaker 2: one of the most exciting young quarterbacks in the country.
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  Speaker 2: At the end of the day, was Furman an overmatched
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  Speaker 2: FCS opponent?
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  Speaker 1: Absolutely they were.
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  Speaker 2: Nobody's crowning Faison Brandon after one game against a team
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  Speaker 2: that's going to lose more often than not when they
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  Speaker 2: play anybody with this kind of talent. But here's the
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  Speaker 2: thing about first impressions. You can't practice poise. You can't
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  Speaker 2: fake comfort in front of a hundred plus thousand fans.
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  Speaker 2: And you definitely can't manufacture the kind of dual threat
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  Speaker 2: production Brandon put on tape in his very first start.
• 11:03
  Speaker 2: Tennessee wanted answers at quarterback heading into the season. They
• 11:06
  Speaker 2: wanted to know if handing the keys to an 18-year-old
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  Speaker 2: true freshman was the right call. Well, they got their
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  Speaker 2: answer in the first quarter. And then they got it
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  Speaker 2: again in the second. And then they got it again.
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  Speaker 1: In the third.
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  Speaker 2: And then he was able to sit down for the fourth.
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  Speaker 2: Now the schedule gets a little more real. Tennessee heads
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  Speaker 2: to Atlanta next Saturday to face Georgia Tech. And this
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  Speaker 2: time it won't be an FCS team that's standing across
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  Speaker 2: the field. It'll be the first true road test of
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  Speaker 2: the Faison-Brandon era. It'll be the first true road test
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  Speaker 2: of the Faison-Brandon era. And it'll be the first real
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  Speaker 2: chance to see if Saturday was the debut or if
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  Speaker 2: it was the beginning of something that Tennessee's been waiting
• 11:40
  Speaker 2: years to find. We'll find out in Atlanta. You probably
• 11:43
  Speaker 2: watched that Georgia tech Colorado game. This is absolutely a
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  Speaker 2: game that Tennessee can go out and put another really
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  Speaker 2: good performance together on national TV for people to see.
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  Speaker 2: I'd love to hear your thoughts on the game in
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: the comments. It was a fun one to watch. I
• 11:56
  Speaker 2: had it on one of many screens that I've got
• 11:59
  Speaker 2: going in this house today. And I definitely, tell you,
• 12:02
  Speaker 2: I really thought Keylon did a good job at Tennessee
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: at Alabama too. When I look at phase on, I
• 12:07
  Speaker 2: think that he might be the best true freshman quarterback
• 12:10
  Speaker 2: in the country. We'll have a lot of games between
• 12:12
  Speaker 2: now and then to figure that out. But I do
• 12:15
  Speaker 2: want to see what Tennessee's defense looks like. Uh, after
• 12:17
  Speaker 2: you start to play some teams too, I was impressed
• 12:19
  Speaker 2: with what I saw there as well. Make sure that
• 12:22
  Speaker 2: you are subscribed. I know you're all in a good
• 12:24
  Speaker 2: mood right now. I know you're all celebrating being one
• 12:26
  Speaker 2: to know. Let's see if we get to two and oh,
• 12:28
  Speaker 2: next week, we appreciate you a ton. for tuning in
• 12:30
  Speaker 2: to SEC Football Addiction. Appreciate our friends over at PrizePix.
• 12:34
  Speaker 2: We're all new users who play a $ 5 lineup using
• 12:36
  Speaker 2: code HMA and win, get $ 150 in lineups instantly. We
• 12:40
  Speaker 2: will see you guys next time. Good luck against Georgia Tech.
• 12:44
  Speaker 2: We'll talk about that one plenty this week. Appreciate you guys.