Tennessee moved up No. 13 after a decisive victory against Kennesaw State and hopes to use that momentum as No. 1 Texas comes to town.
Coach Josh Heupel talked after the late-night game about the highlights and lowlights and what must improve before the next big game at Neyland Stadium. "College GameDay" is coming to Knoxville and the spotlight is on.
Heupel had compliments for the running backs, kicker and quarterback, and touched on team efforts that must improve. Here's what he said in his postgame news conference.
Josh Heupel postgame press conference versus Kennesaw State
Josh Heupel: Ultimately, a good win. Offensively, we've just got to be better in the red zone. But there were some real positives, too. Defensively, we ultimately kept them out of the end zone. Gave them some things here in the early
part of the game, on that first drive. But all in all, a good night. Anyway, I'll open it up. Questions?
Question: Coach, kind of a two-parter. What was working so well for you guys on the ground without Javin Gordon tonight? And also, what did you want to see from your team coming into this game before Texas that needed to be tuned up a little bit?
Heupel: Just play smarter. The penalties last week were egregious. We did play smarter tonight.
There's some things in our communication, defensively early, that we can be better in. Offensively, a few things, too. We're going to have to get better from this tape, too, and understand who we're playing next week. That was one of the main things.
Running backs, you guys always get caught up in who the starter is. Maybe I shouldn't say "you guys," but people do. At the end of the day, you're going to need everybody inside of that room.
Duane ran extremely well tonight. Hunter Barnes went in there and ran well. Deshaun ran really well. We just didn't think it was smart to put him back in at that point in the game as we get into conference play.
Fast starts continue for Tennessee offense
Question: Coach, those opening drives, it seems like you guys are always clicking these past few games. How important is it to see those guys get through that first hurdle and score?
Heupel: It doesn't always happen. It happens because you execute. Guys adjust to something that may be a little bit different on tape. But it was positive to go get a touchdown on that drive and set the tone for the early part of the game.
Tennessee running back depth: Duane Morris, DeShaun Bishop and Hunter Barnes
Question: Talking about that running back room, I know DeShaun's got some seniority, but are you confident in Duane? Can he do everything?
Heupel: Fully confident in him. Fully confident in Baker. Hunter Barnes goes in there and plays extremely well tonight.Those guys are smart. They care. They're selfless. Coach Sims does a great job leading those guys.
Question: What did you think of Duane when he got his moment today?
Heupel: Well, he had more than just one moment. He had 14 carries. He just played extremely well.
You guys have seen that from him. We've got great trust in him. He's grown so much in understanding playing without the ball and then growing inside of the run game, too. Pressing, understanding flow, delivery of blocks, making really good cuts and playing with really good pad level. At the end, he finished his runs extremely well tonight.
Quarterback Faizon Brandon's decision-making
Question: Faizon went underneath a lot, threw to the backs out of the backfield, scrambled a number of times and didn't seem to take a lot of chances downfield. Were you pleased with his decision-making, or was he wanting to push the ball more?
Heupel: Well, we were close to hitting a big one to Mike later in the game. Some of it's going to be based on coverages. Coverages have weaknesses. Structures have weaknesses. There's a way that they wanted to play tonight defensively. I thought Faizon did a good job working windows and taking what was there.
Confidence in kicker Cooper Campbell
Question: As you head into conference play, how big was it to get Cooper a couple of looks tonight? He's now 3-for-3 on the year. What have you seen out of him through fall camp and the first couple of games?
Heupel: Been super consistent. Limited amount of kicks here in the early part of the season. He's done a really good job when he's gotten his opportunities.
But he's been really consistent in practice. We've got great trust and confidence in him. It was good to get him and that unit some of that work tonight because when you need it, you're going to need it.
Hunter Barnes' perseverance and DeShaun Bishop's status
Question: Do you think DeShaun will be ready next week? And also, what's it like as a coach to watch a fifth-year guy like Hunter get those opportunities tonight?
Heupel: Great to see Hunter, a guy who was playing a lot of football early last year on special teams for us and then had an injury.
He cares about this program. Great family, great teammate, selfless, and he's prepared for his opportunity when it comes.
I think it's a great lesson for everybody. Not just wanting something, but preparing for when your opportunity comes in advance.
Tennessee tight ends contribute in passing game and blocking
Question: Josh, what did you think of the tight ends?
Heupel: I'm sure I'd like to watch the tape before I answer that.
But all in all, on the iPad and the brief things that you see, I thought they played really solid tonight.
They had some catches. I thought they ran with the ball. Trent had a really nice run after the catch. There might have been a penalty on that play or the play after, I can't quite remember.
I thought they did a good job in the run game and in pass protection, too.
Arion Carter's impact on defense
Question: What did you see about Arion Carter? He led you in tackles, had a sack and was pretty active all night.
Heupel: Yeah, really active tonight. I think eight tackles. I might be off by one in one direction or another.
He had a sack. He played better football tonight than he did last week, and that's not taking anything away from last week. Just getting his feet underneath him.
Again, he's one of our elite leaders, so it was good to see him play that way.
Tennessee's progress heading into the Texas game
Question: You've got quite the gauge coming next week with the No. 1 team in the country. Do you like where you are through three games?
Heupel: I like the results. I like that we've gotten better every week. This football team should enjoy it briefly tonight and start getting prepared tomorrow. Then Monday we come in and face the reality of who we were on the tape and how we need to get better.
Kennesaw State quarterback Ricky Collins and meeting with Jerry Mack
Question: What do you say about Ricky Collins and the stress he put on the defense when he decided to run it?
Heupel: Yeah, he's an athletic quarterback. I thought he was decisive. You can see him getting better every week on tape.
Question: You had a little longer exchange with Jerry than you do with normal head coaches. What was that like seeing him after the game?
Heupel: Yeah, good to see him. He's got a good football team. They've done a good job there since last year. When they get into conference play, they're going to have a chance.
Tennessee's two-point conversion decision
Question: Is the point-after or going for two called beforehand, or is that just based on what the point-after team sees?
Heupel: Based on the look.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: What Josh Heupel said about Tennessee's 'elite leaders' heading into Texas
