By: Matt Laws matt.laws@averyjournal.com
For
over three quarters of play, Tennessee and Akron kept trading punches. However,
the Volunteers landed the knockout blow in the fourth.
After a letdown against SEC rival Florida a week ago in the second half, Tennessee scored 17 points in the fourth quarter to pull away to take a 47-26 victory over Akron on Saturday evening in Neyland Stadium.
"Well, it was a tough game, and I knew it would be,” Tennessee Head Coach Derek Dooley said. “They cause a lot of problems with our offense, but the disappointing part was the turnovers early in the game. We spotted them 10 points on turnovers, but I was real proud of the team in the second half. They came out and dominated the second half 24-3. So that's a good step for the team. We ran the ball well. We threw it well.”
The road, however, doesn’t get an easier for the Vols as they travel to Athens
on Saturday to kick off a stretch of four games against Top 25 teams starting
with the No. 5 Bulldogs.In the first half against Akron, it looked like the Zips had upset on the mind. The Zips broke onto the board in the game’s opening minute when Akron’s Avais Commack picked off a Tyler Bray pass and raced 44 yards for a touchdown.
Tennessee responded on their ensuing drive as A.J. Johnson ran into the endzone for his second career touchdown from two-yards out. After the teams swapped field goals to end the first quarter tied at 10, both teams added field goals in the early minute of the second quarter.
Former Tennessee High standout Brendan Downs scored his first touchdown as a Volunteer on a six yard pass from Bray. However, the Zips answered with a 37-yard field goal and a 70-yard touchdown run from Quentin Hines gave Akron a 23-20 lead. Derrick Brodus ended the final Tennessee drive of the first half with a 22-yard FG to tie the game at 23 heading into the locker room.
Rajion Neal opened the scoring in the second half as he was on the receiving end of a three yard touchdown pass from Bray as Tennessee begin to slowly pull away from Akron. The teams traded fieldh goals to start the final frame, and then
Bray ended the night 27-of-43 with 401 yards and four touchdowns.
"I told Tyler I was really proud of him because he made a lot of mistakes early on,” Dooley said. “He was off. He was rushing. He was getting ant-sy -- I could feel it. He just kept settling in and he played well down the stretch. He had a good demeanor about him. It was a big step for him."
Neal had 22 carries with 151 yards, while Marlin Lane had 47 yards on nine carries. However, Brodus delivered one of the biggest surprises of the night as he tied a school record with most points by a kicker in a game with 17 as he went 4-for-4 and added five extra points.
The Volunteers return to SEC action on Saturday as they travel to Georgia. Game time in Athens is slated for 3:30 p.m., on CBS.
