Tennessee rolls past Vanderbilt in regular season finale
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee limped into its final game of the regular season riddled with injuries and coming off its worst loss of the season that officially did in its playoff hopes.
Without star quarterback Hendon Hooker, wide receiver Cedric Tillman and a number of players in the secondary, the No. 10 Vols' game against Vanderbilt – which was fighting for bowl eligibility – had the makings of potential letdown game.
Tennessee quelled those concerns on Saturday night on Nashville's West End.
With Joe Milton III getting his first start at quarterback since early last season, the Vols used a few explosive plays and a dominant defensive performance to blank the Commodores, 56-0, at FirstBank Stadium.
The win gave Tennessee its first 10-win season since 2007.
Milton finished 11-for-21 passing and 147 yards and a touchdown in his 2022 starting debut, but the Vols did most of their damage on the ground with Jabari Small, Jaylen Wright and Dylan Sampson combining for 370 rush yards and four scores.
Milton showed off his big arm on the Vols' opening drive, connecting with Jalin Hyatt for a 61 yards to set up first-and-goal. Small scored on a three-yard rush on the following play to give Tennessee a 7-0 lead.
Tennessee (10-2, 6-2 SEC) scored two more times in the first half – once on a Princeton Fant run and again on special teams with Dee Williams' 73-yard punt return for a touchdown.
Vanderbilt (5-7, 2-6 SEC) had a few opportunities to answer, rattling off a few drives that reached inside the the Vols' 25, but the defense gave the Commodores little chance to go any further, limiting quarterback Mike Wright to just 21 passing yards in the first half.
After the Vols forced a fourth-down stop on Vanderbilt's opening drive of the third quarter, Small shook off a would-be tackler and broke into the open for a 52-yard touchdown.
With Tennessee leading 28-0, Vanderbilt punter Matthew Hayball gave the Commodores a momentary jolt of momentum by keeping the ball and running for the first down, but as he got across the 50, a hit from Williams forced the ball out and the Vols recovered.
Wright caught the sideline and scampered for a 50-yard touchdown on Tennessee's ensuing possession and the rout was on. He added another with a 83-yard race to the end zone in the fourth quarter, putting him at more than 160 rush yards.
Sampson put the exclamation point on the win with an 80-yard touchdown run of his own with less than eight minutes left.
A week after giving up more than 600 total yards to South Carolina, Tennessee responded well – holding Vanderbilt's run game to 145 yards while allowing a 107 yards through the air.
Tennessee now awaits its postseason fate with bowl selection looming next Sunday. A New Year's Six bowl is very much in play, especially with SEC West champion and No. 5 LSU losing to Texas A&M.
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