BY JOSH PATE UTSports.com

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Trae Golden came off the bench for Tennessee to score 16 points and lead the Volunteers past Georgia 73-62 Saturday night at Thompson-Boling Arena.

Golden, who had started the previous 22 games this season, was replaced by Skylar McBee in the starting lineup. It was McBee's first career start.

"I just felt like Trae needed to work hard on both ends of the floor and really lead us as a point guard," said Tennessee head coach Cuonzo Martin. "Not necessarily in production or points, but just his approach and intensity level on the defensive side of the ball and really taking pride in it."

Golden responded. His aggressive drives to the basket resulted in him scoring 10 of his 16 points in the second half, going 5-of-6 from the foul line.

"It definitely lit a fire under me," Golden said of the demotion. "It wasn't like a negative fire. I just wanted to be a help to the team in any way I could and that's what I tried to do."

McBee also took advantage, dropping 10 points in the game and scoring three points in the final 19 seconds thanks to two technical fouls on Georgia head coach Mark Fox that resulted in his ejection.

Jeronne Maymon added 15 points and Jordan McRae scored 14.

Tennessee's guard combination of Golden, McRae and McBee combined for 40 points on the night while Georgia's zone defense and double team of Tennessee's post players made it tough for paint points.

"I thought they did a good job of making shots," Martin said. "I thought what was more impressive was our big guys accepting the double team and not turning the ball over because it's not an easy thing to do."

Georgia's (10-12, 1-7 Southeastern Conference) effort to close off the paint worked well early on, but the Bulldogs' post players got into quick foul trouble and the Vols finally found the rim from outside.

"We just were in such awful foul trouble and that obviously was a huge factor in the game," Fox said. "We had to play a football player (Jay Rome) five minutes in the first half just to stay out of foul trouble. But you have to give Tennessee credit. They made some key 3-point baskets."

Tennessee (11-12, 3-5 SEC) struggled most of the night from long range, going 7-of-22 from behind the arc. Yet trailing 41-34 with 14:42 to play, McRae drained a 3-pointer from the wing to spark the offense. Golden followed suit, faking a Georgia defender and nailing a 3-pointer to trim the deficit to 41-40 Bulldogs with 13:46 to play.

Kenny Hall gave the Vols a 42-41 lead with a pair of free throws at the 13:14 mark, and Tennessee never trailed again.

With Tennessee up 48-47, Cameron Tatum's 3-pointer with 7:42 to play sparked a 13-3 run by the Vols down the stretch that was the difference.

McRae was the catalyst during that stretch, nailing a jumper as the shot clock expired and then following that with a 3-pointer. He closed the run with a three-point play to make it 61-51 Vols with 3:25 left to play.

"I'm just trying to stay positive and keep playing with confidence," McRae said. "Even this game, I'm going to watch film tomorrow and try to figure out what I can do better. I'm just really trying to get better defensively every day and keep my offense in mind, too."

Georgia scrapped in the final minute of the game, down 10. Nemanja Djurisic hit a 3 from the corner to make the Vols sweat, but it didn't matter when Fox was slapped with two technical fouls and ejected with 19 seconds remaining in the game. McBee hit three of the four foul shots, squelching Georgia's bid for a late comeback.

The Vols were 28-of-37 from the foul line, led by Maymon's 9-of-12 performance.

"We did a really good job of getting to the free throw line as a team," Martin said. "I think when Jeronne is making those free throws, he's really hard to defend. It really helps us out in so many areas."

Three Bulldogs scored in double figures, led by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's 16 points. Dustin Ware added 15 points behind 6-of-7 shooting. Gerald Robinson had 13.

Georgia led 27-19 with 5:10 remaining in the first half when Tennessee shifted its offensive focus from behind the arc to inside the paint.

The Vols closed the first half on an 11-1 run behind three jumpers from Golden to lead 30-28 at the break.

Georgia, however, responded with its own 11-4 run to start the second half and take back the lead before the Vols' guards finally got hot from beyond the arc.

Tennessee stays at home this week when it hosts South Carolina Wednesday at Thompson-Boling Arena for an 8 p.m. tip-off (SEC Network).

ATHENS, Ga. - In a game that saw defense rule the day for the first 37 minutes, Georgia's late offense enabled the Bulldogs to pull off a 57-53 overtime victory over Tennessee on Wednesday night. It was the Bulldogs' first SEC win of the year as they moved to 10-8 overall, 1-3 in the league. The Vols fell to 8-10 overall and are also 1-3 in the SEC.

Georgia native Trae Golden led the Vols with 16 points while freshman Jarnell Stokes scored 11 points and grabbed eight rebounds in his second college game. Jeronne Maymon also scored in double-figures with 12.

Gerald Robinson led Georgia with 16 points, for the Bulldogs. His lay-in with 1:03 left in overtime put the Bulldogs ahead for good at 54-53. He made a free throw with 26.4 left and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added another foul shot with 12.5 left for the final margin of four.

The Vols had taken a 53-52 lead in overtime on a 3-pointer by Skylar McBee with 2:10 left. But that would be Tennessee's final points of the game.

The game was tied at six consecutive scores: 40, 42, 44, 46, 48 and finally 50 on a dunk by Donte Williams (11 points) with 2:53 left in overtime. Maymon opened the overtime with a lay-up but Georgia tied it on a pair of free throws by Nemanja Djurisic (11 points) seconds later.

Neither team led by more than five points.

The Vols' defense was stellar much of the night, holding Georgia to 34.9 from the floor including 2-of-19 from 3-point range for a mark of 10.5 percent.

Golden had a chance to win the game at the end of regulation put his jumper back-rimmed off with six-tenths of a second left on the clock.

The game was tied four times in the final minutes of regulation as the teams traded baskets.

A basket by Robinson tied the game in three of the four instances in the final three minutes.

Robinson tied the game at 46 on a cross-over lay-up with 18.3 seconds left. That came after Golden gave UT the lead on a floater with 47.5 left.

Robinson's runner with 1:15 left evened the game at 44 after Stokes had given the Vols a 44-42 lead with 1:35 left off a feed from Golden.

Dustin Ware's lay-up with 1:54 left tied the game at 42 after a Golden jumper in paint with 2:45 left, gave the Vols a 42-40 lead.

Georgia tied the game at 40 as Robinson finished off a fastbreak lay-up with three minutes left

Tennessee went on a 8-0 run to take its largest lead of the game at 40-35 with less than six minutes left in the second half. Stokes had seven of the eight points in the spurt. His dunk with expanded the Vols' lead to 40-35 with 6:00 on the clock. Stokes gave the Vols a 37-35 lead on a spin move reserve lay-up with 7:31 left in the game forcing Georgia's coach Mark Fox to call timeout. The pretty move came on the heels of a 3-point play with 8:27 left in the second half to tie the game at 35. Stokes made the steal and proceeded to put one home.

Maymon gave the Vols their first lead of the game with 16:20 left in regulation on a jumper, giving UT a 30-29 edge.

Georgia led 27-24 at halftime as both teams struggled from the floor. The margin of the game was never greater than five points. The Vols tied the game at 19 all on a Golden 3-pointer, part of his nine first-half points, with 6:33 left in regulation.

The Vols step out of SEC play for the final time in 2011-12 to host No. 11 UConn, the defending national champions, on Saturday at 4 p.m., at Thompson-Boling Arena. The game airs nationally on CBS and can be heard on the Vol Network.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - #6/7 Tennessee pulled away from #16/15 Georgia with a 32-9 run in the second half before 13,721 fans to post a 80-51 victory at Thompson-Boling Arena on Thursday night. Glory Johnson posted a double-double to lead four players in double-figures. For Johnson, her 22-point, 13-rebound effort was her fourth straight double-double I and sixth this season. The freshman Ariel Massengale nearly notched her first-career double-double as she tied her career-highs with 19 points and 9 assists.

The Lady Vols improved to 11-3 overall and 2-0 in the SEC with its fourth win a row. Georgia suffered just its third loss to stand at 12-3 and 1-1 in the league. The loss ended the Lady Bulldogs four-game win streak.

Tennessee dominated the glass, holding a 52-32 edge on the boards led by Johnson. Vicki Baugh also hauled down 10 to go along with eight points. The Lady Vols' defense was stellar in holding Georgia to just 34.9 percent from the floor including 4-of-21 from 3-point range.

Meighan Simmons scored in double-figures for the seventh game in a row with 10. Shekinna Stricklen tallied 12 for her 12th game of the year with 10 or more.

Tennessee went on a 24-6 run midway through the second half to take 68-42 lead with 7:16 left on Johnson's 3-point play.

The run expanded to 32-9 on a Cierra Burdick putback with a little more than two minutes left in the game, making it 76-45.

The Lady Vols continued to pull away as Johnson converted a fastbreak 3-point play to give UT a 51-36 lead with 13 minutes left in the game. Simmons' 3-pointer with 11:45 left made it a 17-point bulge at 57-40.

Two beautiful fastbreak give-and-gos between Stricklen and Johnson in the final minute gave Tennessee a 36-27 lead at intermission. Massengale had 15 points in the first half to lead all scorers as the Lady Vols shot 52 percent.

Down by as many as 11, Georgia cut the deficit to five on a 3-pointer by Meredith Mitchell with 2:05 left in the first half causing the Lady Vols to call timeout.

Massengale continued her assault on the hoop with a putback lay-up with 3:51 left in the first half as Tennessee took a 30-20 lead.

Vicki Baugh's first basket of the game with 5:41 left in the first half put the Lady Vols up 28-19.

Tennessee opened the game strong, taking a 20-11 lead in the first 8:13 as Massengale made her first four shots including two 3-pointers.

The Lady Vols return to the hardwood on Sunday as Tennessee travels to Arkansas for a 3:30 p.m., match-up that will air on ESPNU and can be heard on the Lady Vol Network.

Tennessee Coach Derek Dooley discusses the Georgia game and upcoming contest with No. 1-ranked LSU at his weekly press conference.

Opening Statement
"Just kind of closing out Georgia, I feel kind of the way I did coming out of the game. There were a lot of good things that happened in the game. We threw it really well, I felt like, against a good defense. We stopped the run really well against a good running back. He only averaged about three yards a carry. I felt like for the most part we controlled the field position in the kicking game. We had one short punt, but overall the return game was good, the coverage units were really good.

"Those were some good big picture items, but of course we had the three big problematic areas. One is getting the balls thrown over our head. A little bit of that is part of the plan - trying to stop the run. We were really putting the corners out there in a tough situation and we knew that going in. We took our chances. They had a couple of foul balls that they didn't hit that they could have but then they hit some big ones and they hit at a bad time. Of course the running game is abysmal. You look at the two games against the SEC teams. We handed it off 34 times, which is not enough, but the problem is that 15 of them have been negative yards or no yards. I think that's over 40 percent that we aren't even getting it to the line of scrimmage. The first question is why. It's not one thing. When something is that bad, it's not one thing. We have to play more physical, we have to run more physical. I said it last time and that's what we have to do. And in the Georgia game, what really hurt us - we had 14 negative-yard plays if you take the handoffs, the penalties and the sacks. It is hard against a good team and it probably breaks your spirit a little bit as a play-caller. It is hard to stay patient when you're going backwards. The third thing is what I mentioned after the game: I felt like, I don't want to say that we lost our composure completely, but we get so frustrated when things aren't going our way that we don't play to our potential and we get affected by not having immediate success. It is something we talk about, something we harp on, and we just have to learn it over time. We handled that kind of thing well early against Cincinnati because we had some adversity early but then as the game goes on it gets harder and harder - especially on offense with players getting frustrated. We don't play as well. That's on us.

"Our players of the week: Mychal Rivera is doing a great job for us and made some big plays. Prentiss Waggner played one of his better games in the secondary, played more physical, and Devrin Young on special teams, who is really showing he has the ability to help us change field position.

"Of course we know about the injuries. Tauren Poole is day-to-day; he has a hamstring strain. And as you all know, Tyler [Bray] is out five to six weeks, which is obviously not something that you would ever hope would happen - but it has happened.

"This team we are playing this week - the fact that they are No. 1 in the country kind of says it all. They are good everywhere. They are tenacious on defense. It's probably the best offense they have had there in several years, a physical, downhill running team and play action shots down the field. They are going to humiliate you if you don't come ready to fight and that's what we've got to do. We have a tough situation and we all know it but you have to go out there to play and compete. You have to show up and that's what we are going to do so we move on."

On the prospect of playing the No. 1 team in the country
"Every game you should come ready to play but certainly when you have the No. 1 team, the opportunity to do something special should get you more excited. But the biggest thing - I told the team it is going to be doom and gloom around here - call it like it is because of what has happened. We have had some tough luck and it will be doom and gloom if we don't correct some of the things that correct how we are playing. If we put our head down and don't go out there and play the best we can play, it will be doom and gloom. We are going to get annihilated. But if we go out there and compete like we are capable of and not lose composure then we will see what happens."

On the team's response to Tyler Bray's diagnosis
"They were good yesterday. I talked to them a little bit. I know a lot of you guys have heard Jim Stockdale - prisoner of war in Vietnam. I don't know if you've read about him. Eight years he was a prisoner of war: tortured, beat down and of course when he gets out he survived it. And everybody says, `Well, how did you do it?' He was very solution-oriented the whole time he was in there. They asked him who didn't survive and he said, `The optimists.' And you think, `what?' Because you're told, `Hey, everything is going to be OK.' What he said was that the optimists would say, `I'm going to get out by Christmas,' and then Christmas would come. `I'm going to get out by Easter,' and Easter would come. `I'm going to be out by the summer.' And then the summer would come and their spirit would get broken and they died because they quit. The point of it is that you never lose faith in what the end of the story is going to be. I told the team that.

"I don't have any doubts that Tennessee is going to be what Tennessee expects to be. But we also have to confront some tough, brutal facts that we are facing right now. Is it going to be tough? You're dang right. But you're presented with a set of circumstances every day and you can't change what has happened in the past. You can't worry about what might happen. You can't say, `Well, this might happen if that.' You can't do any of that. You have to deal with the circumstances you are presented with and go after it the best you can. That is all you can do and never lose faith in the end of the story."

On struggles in the running game
"I don't think anybody is playing as well as they could play and then when we don't have some early success. In the Florida game we probably lost our patience with it and I acknowledge that, and then last week it was a lot of negative-yardage plays. Sometimes it's the runner, sometimes it's the O-line, sometimes it's the tight end. We just don't look good and we just have to go out there, stick our pads down and run. That's what good running teams do and we are just going to keep working on it."

On the poise of Matt Simms
"Matt has been great and I'm proud of Matt to this point. Of course we all know how disappointed he was last year when we made the switch and it's tough to go out there and watch the other guy light it up, which is what Tyler did. Of course then it is the talk of `is he coming back or is he transferring?' I told Matt we were going to need him this year. Most of the time you need your No. 2. I was hoping we wouldn't but we need him and that's why he's here. He brings a lot of leadership ability. He has been in the fire before. He has a real good command of the offense and he has prepared every week like he is a starter. This is his time and we will see how he does."

On the interaction between Bray and Simms at practice Sunday
"This is an important time for Tyler. It is important because he can still improve in a number of areas not mastered mentally. It is an important time for him to show some leadership to the other guys and keep their spirits up and help demand that they perform the way they need to perform. It is an important time that he shows support for Matt, and he will. He will."

On the correlation between quality of practice and the quality of game play against Georgia
"When you don't have a good week of practice or you have a bad day, you are setting yourself up for inconsistency. But I don't know. Sometimes you go out there and have a terrible week of practice and you play lights out. Other times you have a great week and you don't play well. It is hard to just pinpoint it on that. That little spurt in the third quarter - that is going to happen in games. We are going to have some `Oh my God.' And it's OK. We're sitting there down one score and they have the ball on the 7. We are fine and then we give up two big plays. Now we are down two scores but it's not the end of the world. It is a quarter and a half of ball left. Let's generate a drive. I think our anxiety level - it wasn't because they were scared or they were angry - they just wanted to do well so bad and they were too focused on the result and not on the process, on the play, on executing an assignment and that's something you have to learn as a competitor. You can't focus on the results."

On the play of LSU Cornerback Tyrann Mathieu
"He is as active a player as you can find and their secondary is like that but he has one of those competitive knacks for the ball, the ability to change the game. I call it ballers. Some guys are ballers and some aren't. Ballers, you find them at every position. They have that something where they know how to impact a game. You get them at running back, at receiver, at quarterback, D-line, corners - ballers. And you love them. Half the times he's done it, the coach doesn't even know he's doing it. He sees it, he triggers and he creates. That's what good players do."

On the loss of impact players (i.e. Jackson, Lathers, Hunter, Bray)
"When I was sitting around in August I didn't plan on (losing) Herman and Janzen and Tyler and Justin. Had I known that, I would roll up my sleeves and go to work. What do you do? Nobody is going to feel sorry for Tennessee and they're not going to feel sorry for me. That's OK. I'm not going in the tank because we have had some things happen to us that make it a lot more challenging. Anybody can go in the tank and blame. We just have to find solutions and that is what we are going to do. With good energy, go out there and compete - compete like men. And that's what we should do."

On comparing today's LSU squad to the team when Dooley was an assistant there
"I think it is fair to say that that team since 2003 -- 2001 was when you started seeing it change but then 2003 on they look the same. When I say that, it is not necessarily schematically - but deep, fast, aggressive, incredibly talented. Their D-line, they roll them in. Their No. 2s - you can't tell the ones from the twos from the threes. They have a D-lineman right now that we were begging to get when I got here and we lost him to LSU and he is playing second-team fullback. That's just the way it is. They are very deep and talented. He is a good player. J.C. Copeland. He's playing a lot. He is really rolling at fullback, but we were begging to have him at nose guard. That's what they are.

"You say do I envision us [being like LSU down the line]? Every program is a little different and we don't have 15-18 guys in the state that are calling us up wanting to come. It is a little tougher and we are going to have to shape what we do around the guys that we've got and that's what we are doing right now. We have to keep shaping around the guys that we've got because we aren't as deep and as talented at every position. Do I hope we get to that? Yeah, I expect to get to that to where we have enough to go compete against anybody every week."

On the team's lack of aggression
"Defensively, we're doing a lot of good things. But as far as creating bad events, I think we have one interception and four fumble recoveries. So we've only gotten five takeaways, I think that's the lowest in the league. We're not creating. Now we're not playing badly - we're giving up some big plays. But the defense is playing a lot better than it did last year. As far as that attacking and creating stuff, I think it comes in time. It starts with a lot of good players across the board who play confidently, aggressive and not afraid to make a mistake. We've got to just keep getting better at that. We're not there yet."

On Marlin Lane appearing comfortable catching the ball but not running the ball
"I don't know, and we've been on him for several weeks about getting the ball and going. A lot of it's discipline. You have to stay disciplined with your eyes on what you look at and what you see and commit to, and he's not there yet as a runner. There were a couple of times in the game he got the ball and he gets spooked over here and he stopped and tries to run outside. You just go. But he's doing good things, and he's showing up every game making plays for us. He's going to be a good player for us."

On Lane's running ability after the catch
"We knew he was very athletic and he's got elusive ability. He does. But he's got to learn to run with a little more power. That's what he doesn't have right now. It's a confidence thing. Some runners run to deliver a blow to the defenders, and some runners run to avoid getting hit. The good runners I've ever been around, when a guy comes to hit them, they're delivering the blow. That's what you've got to develop and you've got to train your body that way. It's a mindset, it's a physical presence, and he'll get there. He's got a lot of good qualities."

On LSU's coaching continuity despite the change from Nick Saban to Les Miles
"It looks very similar. They've had tremendous continuity internally. I look in the media guide and all the people I know are still there in the support staff, whether it's administrative support, weight room, training room, video, academic support, admissions - they've got a system down there. And Les has done a great job. Everybody says, `Anybody could have stepped in.' That's not true. A guy can go in and screw it up pretty easily. He deserves a lot of credit - sometimes a lot harder than building is sustaining. They've gotten better and better and better. He got a lot of criticism, as all coaches do and everybody's ready to get on him, but the next thing you know he's wearing everybody out. They've done a great job. They believe in what they do, they know how to do and they've never deviated from it."

On preparing for LSU's two quarterbacks and their different styles
"You have to work on different stuff, so it is hard. That's why they are going to play two. You saw what Jordan (Jefferson) did to us the first play of the game last year - house call, because he's got the ability to do it. Jarrett (Lee) is playing great, he's making the throws down the field and not making the mistakes he made when he was younger. He looks like an experienced quarterback and he's managing that offense as well as you can manage it."

On Da'Rick Rogers' adjustment to being the No. 1 receiver
"He got frustrated, and he can't. He still had five catches for more than 70 yards and you have to be patient. Our guys don't understand patience, they want everything now. It's not going to happen. You learn, you grow and you stay with it for three quarters. I told Tyler sometimes in a game all you've got to do is put together one good quarter. Sometimes all you've got to do is put together one good drive. You've just got to stay with it. (Georgia) did some things we expected them to do, we knew they would do and we knew it would cause us problems. Fortunately, Mychal and Marlin, that's what you've got to do. If they are going to do that, you've got to throw it to some other guys for a while until they get their attention on them. That's kind of what happened, and then we got a couple of plays for Da'Rick. It's a maturity thing; we're not very mature as competitors."

On changing the game plan after Rajion Neal's fumbles
"We had a big plan for Rajion, but it's hard to be confident in a guy who the first two times he touches it puts it on the ground. That was another good thing - we didn't turn the ball over, we were lucky there - and we generated big plays. We were, I think, one out of eight on big plays. There were a lot of good things against a good team. We just didn't score the points."

On thinking about the plan at quarterback if something happened to Matt Simms
"Justin Worley. I think about it. I think about stuff you wouldn't imagine."

On Justin Worley's status and what he does well
"He's doing well. I told him Sunday, `Hey, after the first snap of the game you might get in if Matt gets hurt.' Then it hits you, so you better prepare. You cruise when you're at No. 3. The favorite guy on everybody's team is the third quarterback. He puts the hat on, he's got the clipboard, he knows he's not going in. We'll see.

"He's smart, he's got good stature and he's got a good accurate arm. It's been probably a bigger transition than Tyler because of the (high school) offense he was in. He was a gun guy - catch it and flip it around the park. If we did that, we might have nine snaps over his head. He's got to learn to get under center and do some other things, but he's doing really well. I think it's a lot different, though, I really do. I look back at Tyler's development when Tyler was No. 2, and we had our foot up him from Day 1. Because when you're No. 2, you know as a coach it's one snap and you're in. So there's that panic of getting him ready. When you're No. 3, you're just kind of in that comfort zone. They guy makes a mistake and you go, `Hey, come here. It's OK, Justin. Just do this next time.' Instead of, `What are you doing?!' There wasn't that anxiety level. There will be now, so we've got to coach him a little different."

On continuing issues with James Stone and the snap
"We're trying everything. He's got to do it. There's no magic, you've got to figure it out as a snapper. Every shotgun snapper has a little different technique and it's based on what their comfort level is to throw a strike. I went a looked at every single shotgun snap he's made, and he's operating at about 90 percent right now. Ten percent of the time the snaps are bad. You can't have that. That doesn't seem like a big number; that's a huge number, and that's why we talk about it so much. You've got to be 99 percent; you have to, and he's not. He's either got to get there or we've got to not do the shotgun, or we've got to put somebody else in. Those are the three options.

On discussions about allowing Stone to return to left-handed snaps
"We have and we're going to talk to him. Any way he wants to shoot it back there, he can. That's part of being a player; you figure it out. There's no one way to do everything. Players learn `this is what works for me, this is what I'm confident doing,' because everybody's a little different. Some guys tilt it, some guys turn the strings here, some guys flip it with their wrists, some guys follow through. At the end of the day, we've got to go from Point A to Point B, right here, it's not that hard.

"Here's what happens. He's done it thousands and thousands of times since the offseason. I don't remember how many balls he snapped a day since he switched (hands) - it's hundreds every day. There's a difference, though, when you're down there and it's, `Set, hut (snap); Set, hut (snap).' Then all of a sudden you're in a game and it's third-and-5, `Blue-80, blue-80,' they shuffle, `Mike right! Mike right!' Now the ball - you forget about the most important thing. And that's what's happening to him. There are those times in a game where he shifts his focus to what's happening here and forgets about the most important thing in his job, and that's delivering the ball to the quarterback accurately."

On using the basketball team's 2010 short-handed win over No. 1 Kansas as motivation this week
"We use motivational stuff all the time. We need to worry about us. The fact that our (basketball) team beat Kansas two years ago isn't going to give us a victory over LSU. I hope they believe they can do it. Usually you are doing those things to show, `You can do it, guys.' I did a lot of that at La. Tech. But our guys have to believe they can go fight anybody. It's Tennessee. I don't care how many guys we lose, we're still Tennessee. We fought them good last year. I know this: If we don't come believing we can win and playing to our capacity, then it's going to look like what happened last week. They are going to embarrass you. They are going to embarrass you."

On Eric Gordon being more active
"Eric had a really good game. He played at the nickel spot and those kinds of games suit him. He's physical and he made some good tackles out there in space. We played the bubble screens better than we've ever played them. So that was good to see and I was proud of Eric. He needs to keep getting better. He's was on the shelf for a while."

On LSU's multiple offense
"Here's what happens. First of all their offensive line is phenomenal. They manhandled Florida's D-line, so that ought to put it in perspective. And then they have these big, heavy, physical backs and they flip it back to them and they just go. It's just a surge, a surge, a surge. It's second-and-6, and then it's third-and-1. The defense gets tighter and tighter, and then they fake it. All of sudden their fast guy is about 50 yards down the field and they launch it. It's a little bit like the other night. One guy out there grinding coffee, hanging on, `Please don't be an accurate throw. Please don't be an accurate throw.' That's what it looks like. And if you're back there protecting that guy, then that little four-yard surge is a 14-yard surge. That's what a good power football running team looks like. If they can't have a guy who can throw it or a fast guy who can run down the field, then you're good. You can just get up there and pack the box all day on them. That's why you see their point-total higher than it's been in a long time. They're putting almost 40 a game on people, and let's don't forget they've played Oregon, at West Virginia, Florida."

On thinking of changing the starting offensive line
"We think about it every week, our personnel. I don't think we're at the point where we're ready to do it, but certainly we are looking at guys, evaluating guys. What's hard is we're doing some good things, we're seeing a lot of improvement in a lot of areas. We're seeing continuity get better. But the reality is, if we can't punch some guys out and run the football - I know the issue. At some point, what are we going to do? Snaps are a concern and the run game."

On the offensive line's communication issues
"That happens a play or two. Every team you look at, you're going to have a play or two. But a communication issue is not why we are negative-20 rushing yards. It's a knock-somebody's-you-know-what-backwards issue. I think that's mouse manure. You ever heard that old statement? We're over here worrying about mouse manure when we're up to our ears in elephant you-know-what. That's mouse manure. The communication's fine. It requires a lot more communication in the pass protection. We're doing well in pass pro - we really are. Knock on wood."

On possible replacements on the offensive line
"I wouldn't speculate on any of that right now. We rep a two-deep."

On Antonio Richardson's development
"We can't forget he missed the first six weeks of practice, and that's where you learn your whole foundation of how to play. Then you get into the games - everybody's so far ahead of him. You want to have some communication problems? Let's put Tiny in there next to Marcus Jackson. Now we've got communication problems. When those guys go in, you've got to have guys who can help them. He's developing well and we've had some goal-line packages for him, but we haven't gotten to the goal line. We might have to have some first-and-10 packages on the minus-20.

All right. Let's go get `em."

Here are a few quotes from the Georgia perspective about Saturday's contest:

"It's a very tough place to win - at least it has been for us the last two times we were there. We pretty much got drubbed there. We didn't put up much of a fight the last two times we were in their house, so we need to try to hopefully change that. It will be a challenge for us; we know that and we are looking forward to it."

"Playing there at their place, having to deal with all the crowd noise, having to deal with the things you have to deal with on the road, it's going to make for a heck of a ballgame. I know that two years ago we got beat pretty bad. Last year, we beat them pretty good here, so you can't go by what happened last year. You have to play this year's game and that's what we are getting ready to do. Both of those games, before it was over, it looked like they beat us to the point where we gave in. We haven't had many of those since I've been at Georgia."

"Tyler Bray is playing fantastic. You can look at a man's statistics and see that he's doing great, but when you look at the film it's even more impressive to me. He's a very smooth, effortless passer, very accurate. He makes it look easy, really just from a fundamental standpoint. He's very tall, a guy who can see the field well and put in on the money."

"They don't have a lot of sacks, they don't have a lot of interceptions, but they also aren't giving up very many big plays. I think they are really an outstanding defense. Playing there at their place, having to deal with all the crowd noise, having to deal with the things you have to deal with on the road, it's going to make for a heck of a ballgame."

"I got to know him. I know when he was a first-year head coach - and I guess Louisiana Tech was his first head coaching opportunity - we had a couple conversations. I think he was just calling some head coaches around the country that he knew and had some relationship with and was just talking a little bit about what he was about to go into and anything that I might be able to help him with. I don't remember the exact conversation other than there was a couple things that came up and he wanted to know how I did this or that. There was a little bit of that going on, so I've known him for a while now."

"That quarterback is the real deal and they've got a big ol' pretty offensive line. I think they present a big challenge, I really do. And I hope and pray that our guys accept that challenge to go out and be better than they were last week, because that's what it's going to take for us to be successful."

"I played against Tennessee (in Knoxville) my freshman year and it was a pretty hostile crowd. I was kind of upset because I felt like we just fizzled out in the second quarter; the score was pretty even and then we just fizzled out. The crowd got even louder because they felt like we gave up. I'm excited on going back in that stadium and showing them that this is a different Georgia team."

"Just as far as switching up the snap counts and looking at the ball, I think the main thing is just looking at the ball. You won't be able to go off the snap count because it's so crazy out there. We're starting to practice mixing up a few things."

Tauren Poole joked last Saturday about what it might take to get Tennessee's running game where it needs to be.

"For one, I can't fall when I've got a touchdown," Poole said with a smirk. "That was terrible on my part."

Poole was referencing a play in the Vols' 41-10 victory over Buffalo when a massive hole opened in front of him to reveal a clear, 20-yard path to the end zone. But instead of scoring his second rushing touchdown of the year, Poole slipped and fell.

Two days later, when Poole and the Vols met the media on Monday in advance of this week's 7 p.m. kickoff against Georgia (TV: ESPN2), he wasn't joking.

"The running game hasn't been there all year in my opinion," Poole said. "I have to get better at that. I haven't really done anything this year that I was supposed to be doing."

Poole has 318 yards through four games, with matching 101-yard outputs against Cincinnati and Buffalo. He had 98 yards in the season opener against Montana. But against Tennessee's only Southeastern Conference foe so far, he had 18.

Georgia's 3-4 defense has held its last three opponents to just 23 total points, and for the season the Bulldogs (3-2, 2-1 SEC) are holding opponents to 106 yards per game, which ranks fifth in the SEC.

Poole wants to prove he can run against quality SEC teams, and that the Vols aren't a one-dimensional offense, even if they led the conference in pass efficiency and rank last in rushing yards per game.

"I've got to continue to get better in the run game," said Poole, who is from Toccoa, Ga. "We've got to continue to get better as an offense in the running game to open up the pass for (quarterback) Tyler (Bray) and become a more balanced offense."

Tennessee head coach Derek Dooley said Poole has shown signs of improvement this season.

"I think he's hard on himself," Dooley said, noting that Poole needs to slow the game down in his mind. "Sometimes he gets a little jerky and antsy with high anxiety, and he sees things and stops and makes a cut and makes another cut. He needs to play a little more calm when he gets to the secondary.

"I remind him that he's really a fast guy. When the ball breaks out, the best thing he can do is just run straight instead of making a lot of cuts. I think he'd see more production if he did that. He's working on it."

These last few weeks have been the perfect time to work on it, too.

Tennessee healed from a defeat at Florida in which it rushed for minus-9 yards with a bye week before last week's romp against Buffalo.

Georgia, however, begins the Vols' grueling stretch of October conference games that include the Bulldogs, No. 1 LSU, a trip to No. 2 Alabama, and a home date with defending SEC Eastern Division champs South Carolina.

But Poole and Dooley aren't focused on October. They're focused on Saturday.

"I've told the team this: We're not playing October," Dooley said. "I've heard more people say, `The next four games ...' or `October.' I'm thinking to myself, we're playing Georgia and that's it. It doesn't matter who we played last week or who we play next week. We've just got to go week to week. Is this another measuring stick of where we want to be? Of course it is. But I think every game in some way is."

The Bulldogs thumped the Vols 41-14 last year in Athens, but Dooley doesn't want payback to be a focus this week.

"I've never been one of those types of guys where you want revenge," Dooley said. "We shouldn't have to have last year as motivation for us to play well. We only get 12 days a year that we get measured on. I tell the team that all the time and there's no excuse not to be ready as coaches, as players. So all I'm worried about is how much we've improved, especially going against a good football team? What are we going to look like compared to what we looked like two weeks ago?"

Two weeks ago, the Vols competed, but the run production struggled. Poole wants to continue his corrective measures, and he echoed Dooley's narrowed scope.

"All the focus is on Georgia," Poole said, noting that family ties to Georgia were not a motivating factor for better run production this weekend. "Saturday's an important game because it's the only game on the schedule."

PICKING APART INTs
This time last year, junior defensive back Prentiss Waggner had already matched the school record by returning two interceptions for touchdowns after four games (he eventually broke it with his third against Ole Miss).

Fast forward to the 2011 Vols, who will enter their fifth game Saturday against Georgia with just one overall INT as a team. But that doesn't mean they're dejected.

"The interceptions are about being at the right space at the right time," defensive backs coach Terry Joseph said. "I don't think we have been in that situation a lot this year. I thought we defended the pass a little better against Buffalo. I think the more we emphasize it in practice and the guys understand when and where they need to be for the turnovers to start coming. I don't think it is time to press the panic button."

No unit or one thing is specifially to blame. It's a collective effort from all facets of the defense.

"If there was a magic answer to that we would have addressed it already," defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox said. "Obviously it is pressuring the quarterback, it is being aggressive with the ball in the air, it is affecting the routes of the receivers, it is affecting the pass protection, it is a lot of things. It's really not one answer.

"We practice turnovers all the time. We work on it daily. If you try to force the issue, sometimes guys will start pressing to make plays they shouldn't and that's how you get beat. Experience plays a big part in that, seeing the release of a wide receiver, seeing sprint outs, seeing things and being able to play where the game slows down definitely helps you take chances on plays sometimes."

CHARLES A CONCERN
When the Georgia offense takes the field at Neyland Stadium this Saturday, it will present the Volunteer defense with a challenge it has yet to face this season in the form of an elite, pass-catching tight end in junior Orson Charles.

One of Bulldog quarterback Aaron Murray's favorite targets all of last year, Charles has seen his role increase even more in the passing game in 2011 as he ranks second on the squad with 16 receptions for 256 yards, including a team-best four touchdowns.

Tennessee defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox knows the Vols will have their hands full trying to slow down the 6-3, 241-pound junior. It will be somewhat of a new challenge for the Big Orange this season as they have allowed just three catches to tight ends all season - two by Montana's Greg Hardy and one by Adrien Robinson of Cincinnati.

"He can stretch you," Wilcox said. "He is a very athletic guy and when he runs with the ball he looks like a wideout. Anytime you have a tight end that can stretch the field like that (the question) always comes up about how you are going to cover them, whether you have linebackers or safeties, that is always an issue. Tight ends that can stretch the field vertically always create problems. It will be a test for everybody, not only the linebackers, but the safeties, the corners, anybody who has to match up with him or their wideouts. They are athletic guys that can do something with the ball so it will be a good test for us all the way around."

The challenge of covering Charles will likely fall on the shoulders of the Tennessee linebacking crew. As talented as the Tampa, Fla., native is, UT linebackers coach Peter Sirmon isn't asking his charges to do anything different this Saturday.

"He has good tools," Sirmon said. "He runs extremely well and they do a good job of finding ways to get him the ball. When the ball is designed to get to him, the quarterback does a good job of waiting for him and getting the ball to him. (Our linebackers) have a technique they have to perform. They have to be aware of what his strengths are, but we don't change the techniques. We just have to do a better job of applying them and being aware of where he is on the field."

QUOTABLE
Defensive backs coach Terry Joseph
(On the mentality of getting interceptions)
"We always say interceptions are accidents. We just need a little more accidents to happen. I think once you start over-emphasizing the guys start looking to try to get interceptions and then you start being susceptible to double moves. Over time they will come. I don't think it something that I am going to go into the room and start screaming at them for not getting interceptions."

(On Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray)
"If you just watch the first ten plays of last year's game you can tell that once he gets out of the pocket he is very dangerous. For our underneath players it will be very important to keep an eye on him to see what we will do when he gets out of the pocket and reduce the space and make a good tackle. And the good thing against him is that hopefully you stand coverage late and have some success."

(On using Brian Randolph at safety and Prentiss Waggner at corner)
I thought it worked out well. Brian is a guy that has been coming along ever since training camp started and Prentiss right now is more comfortable out there so it gives us some great options. (Marsalis) Teague and Prentiss being out at corner, we feel good about it. With Brian, he gives us a lot more versatility."

Defensive line coach Lance Thompson
(On Georgia)
"This will be the first time all year that we will see a team that runs downhill. They have talent everywhere, a typical Georgia team. They have a really good freshman running back, a great tight end, their quarterback is playing at a high level and their offensive line is massive, so we have our work cut out for us. We will have to tackle well and like Coach Dooley said, we have to restrict space and not really give them a lot of room to operate. We have a great challenge this week."

(On the defensive line rotation)
"We are thin and everyone knows we are thin. We are trying to rotate guys in there and as the competition heats up we are just going to have to have more bodies in there. It is a long season and we are not particularly big up front so we need to rest guys and not just have them get beat up. We do a good job rotating the kids and stuff and they did a nice job first time out there last weekend for us."

(On Georgia tailback Isaiah Crowell)
"The kid has a great vision and he balances out really well. He accelerates that is hard to tackle, if you can imagine a little bit of Lattimore - I have talked to some coaches in the league that have already played him and they say he is one of the best backs in the SEC in the last ten years. The kid is a special guy."

Linebackers coach Peter Sirmon
(On defending against the play action)
"The linebackers have to have good eyes and have to have good discipline at what they are looking at because they do a nice job of selling the play fake. With the stress of (tight ends Orson Charles and Aron White) running vertically, it does put a lot of stress on you."

(On A.J. Johnson playing some nickel)
"He just needs to continue to develop. He has good instincts and is a very good tackler. We just need to get him more reps in the nickel and just keep developing him. There aren't many guys that have picked it up as quickly as he has."

Special teams/tight ends coach Eric Russell
(On working with Devrin Young on ball security)
"The fine balance is making sure Devrin has his confidence, has his understanding, is not afraid to be aggressive and go get the ball, but at the same time understand how precious that thing is and we can't do anything if we don't have it and don't maintain possession. You don't want to slow him down, but hopefully it won't turn into an issue. We'll find out here starting Saturday."

(On how the coverage units have combatted short kickoffs)
"I think they've been doing a good job with that. The (kickoffs) have been short. It's about running with speed, finding where the ball is at and using your fundamentals and techniques. I don't put it in our cover units head about the ball, Michael (Palardy) has to get that fixed, but they have to understand their job. Everyone talks about lanes and lanes are good for an initial landmark, but you have to defend the ball and the ball moves all over that field. What our kickoff team does understand is their leverage assignments and responsibilities, so when you don't get a perfect kick they know how to adjust to those things. And then it is just running and playing fast."

Vol Report lead contributed by Josh Pate.

One word Tennessee offensive coordinator Jim Chaney reiterated over and over again when asked about each unit of the Georgia defense was `stature.'

"I think they're very good," Chaney said in reference to the Bulldogs' secondary. "They're athletic. They're physical. Once again, they have stature. I look at Georgia's defense and I say they have stature at all positions. You're not going to walk in there and go, `Boy, they aren't very big.' They're large, they're big and they're athletic. They're going to be tough to beat."

`Stature,' begins first and foremost with Georgia's defensive line, composed of no one weighing under 306 pounds. The Bulldogs' front three is anchored by nose tackle Kwame Geathers, a 6-6, 350-pound sophomore.

"I think they have a lot of stature in the front, power and strength," Chaney said. "Those are big kids. You talk about some 350-pound defensive tackles, there are not many people in college football that are going to root those boys out.

"I think the bottom line is they're physical, they have a lot of stature up front and they're difficult to move. They're just large."

Georgia's defense, which has given up just one touchdown in the last three games, is a dynamic one with the ability to flash a lot of different looks.

"They're an impressive group of kids," Chaney said. "They fly around and hit people. I'm excited about the opportunity to get to go play them. They're a zone team primarily but if they can get to you with some pressure in man-free they'll do that too. They have the whole gamut. They have everything in their wallet. It just depends on what he's going to pull out."

What's unclear is what Georgia will find in its wallet to slow down sophomore wide receiver Da'Rick Rogers. The Calhoun, Ga., native is second in the SEC with 27 receptions and 442 yards.

"That's (Georgia defensive coordinator Todd Grantham's) M.O. in the past," Chaney said on whether the Bulldogs would try to take Rogers out of the passing game. "He's done that a little bit on certain down-and-distances. I'm not sure how they'll try to do that. Da'Rick is playing good and Tyler (Bray) is playing good throwing him the ball. I don't know. You'll have to ask them, but I think that they probably will consider that."

THIRD-AND-EASY
One of the most impressive figures about the Vols after four games is 62.1.

That's the percentage of third downs they've converted (36-of-58), which is tied with Wisconsin for the highest mark in the nation and leads the SEC.

"Anytime you're doing anything successfully, it's usually based on execution," Chaney said. "The kids are more familiar with the plays that we run on those down-and-distances and they believe in them now more than they did last year. They're out executing plays. There's no secret to what we're doing on third down. The quarterback is playing pretty good, the receiver is getting open and he's throwing the ball to him. Above all else, we're keeping him standing up quite a bit."

Against Buffalo, the Vols converted 12-of-16 third downs, the most they've been successful on since accomplishing the same number in 1996 at Memphis.

The improvement is vast from a 2010 season in which Tennessee converted 37 percent (69-of-189). One of the biggest reasons is a more fluent offense that's found increased success on first and second down.

"I don't feel like we're sitting there at third-and-13 a lot, although, we do too many of them for me. I feel like we're ahead of the stakes a little bit."

GEORGIA OFFENSE ON TENNESSEE'S MIND
As the Tennessee defense prepares for this Saturday's contest against Georgia, it sees an offense that can put up yards in a number of different ways and a group of players starting to find their identity.

For the Bulldogs, it all starts with the ability to run the ball and the emergence of freshman running back Isaiah Crowell, who ranks fourth in the SEC with 103.0 yards per game, has allowed them to do just that.

"Georgia, their football brand has always started with a good power-I running game," Dooley said. "When they have a good, heavy tailback who can make yards, then it opens up that play action big time. They've found that. They didn't have that the first game. They were still searching. Since that time, they set up that throw with a good running game and it's hard to defend. They're very balanced and very efficient."

Tennessee defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox echoed Dooley's sentiments about Georgia and, more specifically, Crowell.

"He is very explosive and has great change of direction," Wilcox said. "He has really good vision. I think he is a talented guy. He has gotten better throughout the season and you can see that they have added some more things from the first game to where he is now in terms of some different plays, a little bit more in pass protection and some screens. He is a very talented guy and he can take it the distance on any snap. He is a threat any time he touches the ball."

As dangerous as Crowell can be, don't expect to see the Vols crowding the box to stop the run.

"Everything they do on offense complements each other," Wilcox said. "You can't really cheat in terms of formations because whatever they do in the run game, they have a complement in the pass game for it and they have really good people doing it. Obviously the quarterback does a heck of a job for them, they have talented guys at running back and their tight end can stretch you, so it is a very well-rounded offense and they can score a lot of different ways.

"Play action is a big part of their game in their two-back stuff. We have to have really good eye discipline at every level - defensive back and linebacker - because they can fool you and get your eyes in the wrong places."