Quarterbacks
Daniel: Worley lost one fumble on a blindside hit, held onto the ball too long a few other times and had a few throws he’d like back, but he played more than well enough for the Vols to win, accounting for five touchdowns – two on the ground and three through the air. It was the first time a UT QB has accounted for five scores with at least one coming both ways since Casey Clausen in 2002. Nathan Peterman finally got some low-pressure reps and responded with his first career touchdown, while making a few nice passes as well. Nothing brilliant from these guys, but solid efforts overall. Grade: B
Houston: Pretty hard to look good when your protection is struggling, there is no threat of a running game and your wide receivers aren’t getting open, but I actually thought that it was a pretty good day for the quarterbacks. Justin Worley did have another costly sack-fumble that led to three points for UTC, but he also accounted for three touchdowns through the air while rushing for another two scores. Nathan Peterman also got in on the action with a late touchdown run of his own – the first of his career. There wasn’t much ‘sizzle’ from the position this game, but they did what they had to and helped this team advance to 3-3. Grade: B
Reed: Worley accounted for five total touchdowns and showed off his wheels at times. You got to see how much better the Vol offense looks when the QB is a threat to run the ball. They struggled to move the ball against UTC at times, but the QBs made several big plays with their legs to keep drives going. Peterman was effective in relief. It wasn’t all good, though. The Vol offense averaged less than 5 yards per play, which isn’t very good against anyone, especially an FCS opponent. Much of that comes from the inability of the Vol QBs to connect with open receivers downfield. North was open early in the game for a sure TD and was overthrown. The Vols have to hit receivers when they’re open down the field to keep defenses honest and make those “splash plays” Jones likes to reference. Grade: B
