Special Teams
Daniel: One missed field goal by Aaron Medley was the only noticeable miscue. Everything else went extremely well. Two returns – a kickoff by Evan Berry and a punt by Cam Sutton – set up the Vols up for two touchdowns off of the short field. Cortez McDowell also recovered a muffed punt by the Mocs late to set up UT’s final touchdown. Medley hit 7-of-8 kickoffs for touchbacks, did make another field goal and hit all his extra points. Matt Darr had another solid day punting with an average of 50 on four attempts, including two downed inside the 20. Coverage was outstanding as well. Grade: A-
Houston: This group was better in all areas on Saturday. Cam Sutton finally got a punt that he could return and took it back 38 yards to set up a touchdown, while freshman Evan Berry took the opening kick of the second half back 68 yards to set up another. Kicker Aaron Medley missed a field goal in the second half but did tally seven touchbacks on kickoffs. Matt Darr had four punts that carried a 50-yard average and coverage units were again strong. The missed field goal was the only deduction from this group on Saturday – solid performance. Grade: A-
Reed: The Vols finally broke a couple of long returns. Sutton got his first solid crack at a punt return and made UTC pay. Evan Berry did the same on his first kick return. He’s clearly one of the best athletes on the team and needs more time on the field. With Young out with broken ribs, Berry should see significant time returning kicks. Matt Darr has been very good the last few weeks and averaged 50.0 yards per punt. Though Medley missed a field goal, he took a step forward on kickoffs with seven touchbacks. Grade: A-
