KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — No. 19 Tennessee could not match Vanderbilt in the second half, dropping a 45-24 contest to close out the regular season on Saturday night in front of a sellout crowd of 101,915 at Neyland Stadium.
The Volunteers (8-4, 4-4 SEC) put up 382 yards of total offense in the game, but were unable to overcome a Vanderbilt (10-2, 6-2 SEC) attack that went over the 500-yard mark. After the game was tied at 21 at halftime, the Commodores outscored UT 24-3 over the final 30 minutes of the contest.
Tennessee thwarted Vanderbilt’s first scoring opportunity thanks to a third-down interception by Edrees Farooq, his second of the season. Tennessee capitalized on the turnover, with DeSean Bishop crossing the goal line on a two-yard run with 3:49 to go in the first quarter.
Vanderbilt evened the game on its next drive, capped by a run for 28 yards by Sedrick Alexander to the end zone tied the game at seven apiece with 58 seconds remaining in the first quarter. The Commodores gained the lead early in the second quarter, with a touchdown carry of three yards from Makhilyn Young to make it a 14-7 score line with 11:39 to go in the half.
Tennessee tied the game up in quick fashion. Needing just 1:05 of game clock for the scoring drive, Joey Aguilar found Chris Brazzell II on a deep post for a 52-yard touchdown pass. The completion put Aguilar over the 10,000-yard threshold for his career and was Brazzell’s third of the touchdown reception of the season for 50 yards or more.
UT got the ball back with 10:26 in the second on an interception by freshman cornerback Ty Redmond, and Bishop wasted no time putting the Big Orange back ahead on a touchdown scamper for 35 yards. The touchdown was Bishop’s 14th of the season, moving him into a tie for fifth in program history for rushing touchdowns in a single-season.
Vanderbilt tied the contest once again just before the break, with Diego Pavia finding Tre Richardson for a six-yard touchdown pass with 12 seconds left on the clock.
The Commodores opened the scoring in the second half, with Alexander picking up his second rushing touchdown of the game to make it a 28-21 ballgame. Following a Tennessee three-and-out, Vanderbilt added a 35-yard field goal by Brock Taylor with 2:12 in the third quarter to make the score 31-21. The Vols tacked on a field goal of their own on their next drive, a 25-yard make from Max Gilbert to cut the deficit back to seven.
On its next possession, Vanderbilt took a two-touchdown lead once again as Pavia scrambled 24 yards to the end zone with just under nine minutes to go in the fourth. A Tennessee drive was halted on fourth down at midfield, and VU responded with Alexander’s third rushing score of the game from 39 yards to make it 45-24 with 5:10 left in the fourth stanza.
Aguilar finished the contest completeing 29-of-44 passes for 299 passing yards and one touchdown pass. His lone score went to Brazzell, who led the team with 91 receiving yards. Redshirt sophomore tight end Ethan Davis had a career day receiving, leading the team with seven receptions for 85 yards.
Senior safety Andre Turrentine paced the Tennessee defense with ten tackles, while Farooq tallied nine tackles and one of the Volunteers’ two interceptions.
UP NEXT
Tennessee finishes the regular season with an 8-4 record and awaits its postseason bowl destination.
