BUTCH JONES PRESS CONFERENCE
Opening statement:
“First, of all I want to thank our great, great crowd, Vol Nation for coming out and supporting this football team. They’ve been remarkable all year long. Today exemplifies what we have here in Tennessee. Proud of our players. This game summarized our season with adversity, great resiliency and we found a way to win the football game. We always talk about impactful plays. There were a number of them. I thought our special teams were outstanding. Matt Darr flipped field position when we needed it. TK’s interception in the 3rd quarter, great play and we capitalized, scored a touchdown off of that. I thought the 95-yard drive in the second quarter was big and our longest drive of the year. But again I’m just proud of everyone. It wasn’t pretty but we found a way to get it done. We were behind with injuries and our players just kept working.”
On the run game after Hurd’s injury:
“When Jalen [Hurd] went out, we had to rely on Josh [Dobbs]. Marlin Lane is an individual who hasn’t played much all year. For him to step up like he did in a critical game, it was great to see his efforts rewarded as well.
“Anytime you add the element of a running quarterback to your offense, it gives you an advantage. Josh has done a great job of being able to do that.”
On the punt return from Cam Sutton:
“We felt very confident coming in that we were going to get a big return. We’ve been one or two individuals away. Everyone did their job and Cam provided that spark and momentum early for us. We needed it.”
On the players’ emotions after becoming bowl eligible:
“It’s very rewarding. That’s why you coach. You coach to influence young people, create positive change and build a culture. They didn’t want it to end. We talked about our life expectancy and fighting to live two, three more weeks. I told them we had a team meeting Monday at three o’clock. It could be to go over our bowl schedule or it could be goodbye. And it kind of hit them. They said ‘coach we don’t want to say goodbye.’ Again, this group has been resilient all year.”
On the passing game:
“We found a way to win the football game. That’s critical from our quarterback position. Yeah, we need to talk about the errant throws and taking care of the football. I thought he pressed for the first time. I thought Josh [Dobbs] was trying to make some plays. But when we needed him down the stretch, he stepped up and delivered.”
Forum Discussion: Tennessee vs Vandy game highlights/presser