Tennessee Volunteers vs. Arkansas State Red Wolves Complete Game Preview

The Tennessee Volunteers vanquished one mid-major perennial powerhouse during the season's first week.

They'll try to repeat the feat against Arkansas State on Saturday.

An unexpectedly stingy Vols defense smothered Chuckie Keeton and Utah State's passing attack en route to a 38-7 season-opening win Sunday night. That game provided UT coach Butch Jones with reasons to be excited as well as frustrated with his youthful team.

He said in his postgame press conference, according to UTSports.com:

"

Most growth and development in a football team happens from Week 1 to Week 2, so we have to take monumental steps in moving forward. This is just one game still a lot of mistakes; a lot of mistakes that we have to clean up but it's always great to start 1-0 over a very good Utah State football team. It's a quality opponent.

"

First-year coach Blake Anderson's Red Wolves will present another tricky opponent that will provide a much different challenge.

The three-time defending Sun Belt Conference champions churned out a balanced attack in beating FCS power Montana State last week.

Anderson—previously offensive coordinator under Larry Fedora at North Carolina—saw his team roll up 294 rushing yards and 264 passing yards in a 37-10 win. 

They needed every bit of it too, as they scored 24 unanswered second-half points to finally pull away.

On paper, UT is a superior team, but the Vols have plenty of miscues to correct if they're going to earn any style points on their way to 2-0 and build confidence going into next week's premier matchup with Oklahoma.

Let's take a look at everything you need to know about the young Vols’ second test against ASU.

Date: Saturday, Sept. 6

Time: Noon ET

Place: Neyland Stadium, Knoxville, Tennessee

TV: SEC Network

Radio: Vol Network, XM192, Sirius 112

Spread: Tennessee by 17 points, according to OddsShark.com.

Tennessee's Keys to Victory

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Xerox the Blueprint

Sunday night's win over Utah State is the exact way talented teams like Tennessee must dispose of pesky out-of-conference opponents.

Score quickly. Create a momentum-swinging play. Capitalize with a touchdown. Keep the pressure on throughout the rest of the game. Rinse, repeat.

USU never had a chance once A.J. Johnson blew up the kick returner following UT's first touchdown. He forced a fumble that was recovered by Todd Kelly Jr. and turned into another touchdown one play later.

Pig Howard said of the two rapid-fire scores, according to UTSports.com: "It created a lot of energy, not only on the field, on the sideline, and you know our fans brought that intensity throughout the game. So, all around as a unit it helped everyone."

If the Vols could bottle up that formula and sell it, everybody would buy. They'll need more of the same this weekend. ASU has no business staying tight with UT on the scoreboard, but the Vols have sleepwalked through games like this before (see: South Alabama, 2013).

Tennessee demoralized a pretty good program in Utah State because it punched it in the mouth and kept punching. The Vols need to do it again.

Pressure Cooker

The similarities between the weaknesses of Utah State and Arkansas State are striking. Just like the Aggies, the Red Wolves start four new offensive linemen.

USU had no answer for the Vols, and neither should the Wolves.

Curt Maggitt, Derek Barnett, Chris Weatherd and LaTroy Lewis all had success pressuring Chuckie Keeton in the season opener. The defensive tackle rotation—namely Jordan Williams and Danny O’Brien—prided itself on penetration as well.

Jones told GoVols247's Ryan Callahan (subscription required):

"

We're much more athletic up front. But, again, you never know how they're going to perform until the lights go on. A lot of these individuals (were) performing for the first time. But, again, Derek Barnett gave us a lot of quality snaps. It was great to have Curt Maggitt out there, Jordan Williams in the middle, Owen Williams. And Dimarya Mixon adds another dimension in terms of his speed and quickness, and then Chris Weatherd as well. Again, I thought it was a very good team win.

"

They'll need the same again this week against ASU's revamped offensive line and junior dual-threat quarterback Fredi Knighten. The signal-caller went for 323 yards against Montana State, including 104 on the ground. He's yet another mobile threat for UT to contain.

The Vols shut down Keeton by pressuring him and staying disciplined in their rush lanes, rarely letting him out of the tackle box. That's also the key to shutting down Knighten.

Minimize Mistakes

One of the first things UT head coach Butch Jones lauded in his postgame comments after harping on it all through camp was the fact that the Vols had zero turnovers against the Aggies.

That doesn't mean UT was mistake-free.

The Vols were flagged six times for 40 yards—many of those in crucial, short-yardage situations that killed drives and turned Jones' face every shade of red on the color wheel.

Also, UT's vaunted receiving corps dropped several would-be big gains, and Pig Howard underthrew a wide-open receiver on a throwback pass that would have gone for a huge gain, if not a touchdown.

There were plenty of maddening teaching points. They had no effect on the outcome against USU, but they need to be corrected before the big boys hit the schedule.

Arkansas State's Keys to Victory

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Sprint to the Edges

Surprisingly, Tennessee didn't have to guard too many speed sweeps against Utah State.

Part of the reason for that was UT's defensive line getting in the backfield and wreaking havoc, but the Aggies didn't attack the Vols' biggest Achilles' heel from a season ago. Instead, they stayed with Keeton through the air and ran a lot of inside zone plays.

When they finally ran a receiver sweep in the fourth quarter with speedy jitterbug JoJo Natson, it went for a 38-yard gain.

Arkansas State has had some pretty good offensive-minded coaches in recent years with Hugh Freeze, Gus Malzahn and Bryan Harsin, so you know the team has recruited some speedy offensive athletes.

The Red Wolves need to get those guys outside and make UT's youngsters make perimeter plays.

Get to Worley

The Vols' biggest weakness is the offensive line. That was glaring after Week 1.

Though he missed some throws downfield, senior quarterback Justin Worley was calm and collected in his first start of the season. But he was sacked twice and evaded pressure a few other times.

That wall of orange and white from a season ago no longer protects UT's signal-caller.

Arkansas State had three sacks in the first game and needs to find a way to be disruptive again. If the Red Wolves can get to Worley and force him into mistakes, they may be able to secure momentum and jump on Tennessee before the Vols know what hits them.

It doesn't look like Worley is going to be easy to rattle, but that's the only way teams are going to stop the Vols' passing attack.

Winning Ways

The Wolves aren't used to losing.

That may not sound like much against an SEC football team like the Vols, but the fact is UT can't afford to let this game stay close long, because ASU can gain plenty of confidence the longer the game is within reach.

Jonesboro has been a breeding ground for young coaches with Freeze (Ole Miss), Malzahn (Auburn) and Harsin (Boise State) all staying one season before moving on to greener pastures in recent seasons.

Now, it's Blake Anderson's turn, and he's a hot coaching name too.

Two things have remained firm through all the tenures: The team wins a lot (29-11 in the past 40 games), and the offenses thrive (300-plus yards in 46 of the past 52 games), according to the team's official postgame notes.

If ASU can make some big plays and keep it close into the second half, UT will be in dangerous territory.

Tennessee Players to Watch

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Marlin Lane

Freshman running back Jalen Hurd's first game in orange and white was one of the most highly anticipated in recent memory.

But when the actual game started, Marlin Lane was the better running back. Whether UT just wanted to give Hurd a healthy dosage of carries to acclimate him to the college game or felt like he was the better schematic fit against USU, Lane was a bit of a forgotten man in the run game.

Hurd finished with 29 yards on 11 carries and made a defender miss in the open field to score a touchdown on a screen pass, while Lane had 41 rushing yards on 11 carries and a score.

All the talk about Lane's offseason wasn't lip service. The coaches love the commitment he made to rededicate himself to the team. He has been one of the leaders, and his play has backed it up.

It'll be interesting to see when that translates into a bigger offensive role this week.

Chris Weatherd

Not enough can be said about the junior college transfer's Tennessee debut. The impact he made won't be found in the stat sheet, but that doesn't change how impressive he was.

The 6'4", 225-pound outside linebacker is UT's version of a poor man's Bruce Irvin, a pass-rushing situational player who hearkens back to the days when John Chavis coached the Vols defense and employed guys like Nevin McKenzie.

"Chris is continuing to learn our defensive scheme," Jones told the media in the postgame press conference, per UTSports.com. "He brings another element in terms of his speed and his quickness. He's sipping through a fire hose right now: Everything's coming at him."

Because Weatherd didn't qualify and arrive in Knoxville until extremely late summer, he wasn't expected to have a huge impact. Instead, coaches kept him hush-hush and broke him out against USU.

He's big, fast and athletic, and he's going to be a huge asset the more integrated he gets into the defense.

Mack Crowder

All through the preseason, the junior center was one of UT's most consistent linemen, and he was expected to be an anchor for the line moving forward.

But he struggled against Utah State, personifying the Vols' inefficiencies in the offensive front.

Crowder isn't the biggest lineman, and he isn't the strongest, but he is the guy holding down the center of the line and making all the calls for the Vols right now on the front. He has one more warm-up before the gauntlet of Oklahoma, Georgia and Florida is laid down.

He and the offensive live need to figure it out quickly.

Arkansas State Players to Watch

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Fredi Knighten

The former Gatorade Player of the Year in Arkansas is the man who makes the offense click for Blake Anderson's Red Wolves offense.

Anytime a player can rack up 323 yards by himself, he will get the defense's attention, and the Vols will be aware of his performance against Montana State in the opener.

Once he replaced starting quarterback Adam Kennedy and won the GoDaddy Bowl MVP last year, he has been the heir to the ASU throne at quarterback, a position that has produced some prolific numbers in recent years.

At 5'11", 189 pounds, he doesn't have the size to play quarterback for a major program, but he is still extremely dangerous and was named to the preseason All-Sun Belt team. The Vols will have to show him several different packages the way they did Keeton.

Michael Gordon

He wasn't needed much in the season opener, but ASU's tailback can expect to receive a heavy load of action against the Vols. 

The 5'9", 187-pound runner is a prototypical back who has a nice power/speed combo. He was voted by Lindy's as being the toughest player to bring down in the Sun Belt Conference, according to his bio.

And he broke free for a 42-yard run against the Bobcats, so he has big-play ability as well.

Gordon teams with Knighten to give the Wolves a productive ground attack, and big things are expected from the player who was named first-team preseason all-conference by Athlon.

Qushaun Lee

If Lee was a couple of inches taller, he'd probably be on everybody's NFL draft big board.

As it stands, the 5'11", 225-pound linebacker has an outside shot to get drafted, but he's the kind of player who can hang on in the league for a long time.

Lee entered the season just 114 tackles shy of the Sun Belt Conference career record. He also was recognized by Lindy's as the preseason conference player of the year and is known as one of the hardest hitters in all of football.

With Tennessee and Miami next up on the Wolves' schedule, Lee will have a big stage to prove he can play with some of the nation's top talent. Since this is a showcase game for him, the Vols better target him to neutralize his success.

He could play on plenty of SEC teams.

What They're Saying

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When Tennessee JUCO transfer receiver Von Pearson side-stepped a defender and found the end zone for his first career touchdown as a Vol, he told GoVols247's Ryan Callahan he didn't know what to do.

From working in a fast food restaurant a couple years ago to now shining in Neyland Stadium, it's an understandable oversight. "It was so exciting. I didn't even know how to cheer. I didn't even know—'What should I do? Should I point to this guy? Should I just throw the ball?' I had a great time, man. It was a great experience, just scoring a touchdown in Neyland Stadium."

Tennessee coach Butch Jones spouts off a bunch of hype and propaganda, but the nation found out he wasn't blowing smoke when 32 newcomers, including 21 true freshmen, played in the opener, according to GoVols247's Wes Rucker.

ESPN columnist and UT grad Gene Wojciechowski watched the game and tweeted how surprised he was at how often play-by-play announcer Joe Tessitore noted youngsters: "It seems like every time I hear Joe Tess identify a Tenn player, he adds, 'true freshman.' @UTCoachJones wasn't kidding about going young."

Though it wasn't exactly the start new Wolves coach Blake Anderson wanted, he was pleased with his team scoring 24 unanswered points to put away Montana State in the opener.

The Larry Fedora disciple said, according to ASU's official release about the 37-10 win:

"

The game was close for a long time and I was probably most pleased with how our guys responded. The first half we found some ways to sabotage our own drives, but I liked the way we finished our drives in the second half.  Our entire team never flinched, and continued to go to work, stayed positive and found a way to make some plays to get us out in front.

"

Prediction

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This Tennessee team doesn't look like it will overlook anybody on the schedule, and that's bad news for the Red Wolves.

Because that is the only way ASU is escaping Knoxville with a win.

If the Vols play up to their standards, for the first time in a while, they can out-talent teams like the Wolves. But they can't afford to play around with them and make critical mental errors and turnovers.

This game needs to be about UT's improvement before heading to Norman to face Oklahoma.

The biggest things to watch for the Vols are whether the defense can sustain its torrid, pressure-packed play and whether the offense can get its running game going and generate more big plays downfield.

If not, it won't bode well for the future with the Sooners and a loaded SEC schedule on the horizon. But UT can win this game doing just what it did against Utah State.

The Red Wolves have a good bit of speed and talent and should surge toward the top of the Sun Belt again, but that doesn't mean they will hang with Tennessee. The Vols are going to take a big step from Week 1 to Week 2, and this game will produce a similar outcome.

Prediction: Vols 41, Red Wolves 17