What's UT Vols' bye-week objective? 'Fix Tennessee'

Tennessee and Georgia players line up.

ATHENS, Ga. — His team has lost each game it has played against a Power 5 opponent by 26 points, but Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt was buoyed by the Vols’ 38-12 loss to No. 2 Georgia on Saturday.

“I think we’re headed in the right direction,” Pruitt said after UT dropped to 2-3 overall and 0-2 in the SEC.

Tennessee trailed 24-0 before its offense found life and scored back-to-back touchdowns to cut its deficit to 12, only to watch Georgia tack on two more touchdowns.

The Vols have a bye this week before playing No. 9 Auburn (4-1, 1-1) on Oct. 13.

“We’re going to keep working, keep grinding,” center Ryan Johnson said. “That’s all you can do. You can’t look ahead.”

A look ahead could be depressing.

After playing Auburn, the Vols will host No. 1 Alabama (5-0, 2-0), capping a streak of three straight top-10 opponents. The Vols have lost 11 straight SEC games, and it’s a real possibility that their next win of any sort won’t come until November.

Against Georgia (5-0, 3-0), the Vols’ offense mustered just three first downs in the first half before Jarrett Guarantano threw second-half touchdown passes of 37 and 35 yards.

Guarantano has had an improved sophomore season. He is completing 63.4 percent of his passes with four touchdowns and two interceptions.

The offense would benefit from the run game getting back on track after the Vols had a season-low 66 rushing yards against Georgia. Getting the ball in running back Ty Chandler’s hands more often would be wise. He’s averaging 6.2 yards per carry.

The same can be said about receiver Jauan Jennings, who has 12 receptions for 136 yards despite not being targeted heavily.

Tennessee’s defense has improved since allowing 547 yards in a season-opening loss to West Virginia, but it’s been far from dominant. The Vols also would get a boost from forcing more turnovers. Their five takeaways are tied for 10th in the SEC.

A road game against South Carolina (2-2, 1-2) follows the tests against Auburn and Alabama, meaning a 2-6 start is possible. The last time the Vols started in such fashion was 2010, Derek Dooley’s first season as coach. That team started 2-6 before rattling off four straight victories.

“We’ve said all along we’re trying to fix Tennessee, so we’re not going to change that,” Pruitt said of Tennessee’s bye-week objective.

ANALYSIS:Georgia 38, Tennessee 12: 5 things we learned from UT Vols' 11th straight SEC loss

REXRODE:UT Vols can't fast forward to success, but they can fight — and did vs. Georgia Bulldogs

ADAMS:Why UT Vols football has reason for hope after falling to Georgia Bulldogs

TAKEAWAY:For Tennessee, Georgia is 'what we want to be'; Saturday showed UT Vols are long way off

REPORT CARD:Grading the UT Vols: Tennessee football below par in loss at Georgia

MOVING ON:Quart'e Sapp clears the air with UT Vols teammates, responds against Georgia