Let’s dive into the Week 7 advanced stats, courtesy of Pro Football Focus.
As a reminder, this is the PFF grading scale.
< 50 = Bad
50-60 = Average
70-80 = Above Average
80-84 = Good
85 and up = Very, very good.
With that … the Tennessee-Auburn advanced stats…
OFFENSIVE GRADES
Staring left guard Jahmir Johnson (60.7) played just 16 snaps before exiting with an injury.
With DWA tweaking a hamstring, Eli Wolf saw 42 snaps — a career high. Wolf was fairly effective, too, especially as an extra pass blocker in max protection.
Guarantano graded out as the top quarterback in the country Saturday, going 8 of 14 for 232 yards and two touchdowns on throws over 10 yards. On the game, he averaged 10.3 yards per attempt — his second highest ypa vs. a Power 5 team in his career.
The second-year starter was drilled on one throw where the ball hung in the air like a 500 toss, but no Auburn defender was around the football. Otherwise, Guarantano did an excellent job vs. pressure, going 6 of 12 for 146 yards and two scores against AU’s blitzes. I noted this in my review piece, but it was strange that Tennessee didn’t call more play-action shots Saturday. The Vols had success when they did, but just 14 percent of JG’s drop-backs were off play-action — his lowest percentage against a Power 5 team this season.
Finally, with Chandler more involved in the passing game, 33 percent of Guarantano’s completions came behind the line of scrimmage (7 of 9 for 44 yards).
Tennessee’s rushing numbers were abysmal, as 19 of 32 designed runs went for 1 yard or less. Chandler and Jordan combined for 76 yards on 29 carries — 58 of those yards coming after contact, per PFF.
On interior runs between the guards and center, Tennessee averaged 1.5 yards per rush on 18 such attempts. That’s the definition of bullheaded.
Ryan Johnson was the only o-lineman with a passing run blocking grade … and he barely managed that at 60.0.
Hall came in next at 59.0, Richmond was at 58.2, Carvin at 57.3, Niehaus at 54.6 and Smith at 51.8 with a holding penalty.
Tennessee allowed nine pressures against AU — the same number as the Georgia game. The difference was Guarantano was hurried half the time compared to the loss at UGA. Smith, Richmond and Carvin were all victimized by sacks, but Smith finished with his best game as pass protector this season Saturday. He allowed two pressures, but overall, he did a nice job against Marlon Davidson and Big Cat Bryant. On the flip side, going up against Russell and Derrick Brown, Ryan Johnson allowed the most pressure on the afternoon.
Notably though, Hall was fantastic as an interior pass blocker. Many remember him getting beat inside on his very first snap against West Virginia, but in 15 pass blocking snaps, Hall graded out at 82.5. Also, Jordan deserves a hat-tip for his improvement in blitz pickup. I posted the GIF of his block to setup Callaway’s first long gain, but he had two other nice pickups as well. Remember his ghastly performance against UF? That 18.9 grade? Jordan had a pass blocking grade of 80.1 Saturday. That’s evidence of tangible growth.
At wideout, Tennessee did a nice job scheming new ways to get Jauan Jennings the football. He caught his touchdown as a normal X wideout, but the redshirt junior lined up in the slot a bunch Saturday. He also worked more inside routes on tunnel screens and digs. It’s a smart way to use a guy like Jennings, who is big, physical and reliable. On the day, four of his five catches were between the numbers.
Jennings had a great grab over Jordyn Peters, but it was Javaris Davis (No. 13) who Tennessee clearly sought to exploit in 1-on-1 coverage. On the day, the Vols were 4 of 5 for 110 yards and a touchdown against Davis. Three of the receptions were 25+ yard gains.
DEFENESIVE GRADES
In terms of snaps, Bain played 17 snaps, Gooden got 25 (the most in a Power 5 game this season) and Osborne saw 22 (a career-high).
The snap distribution for the middle linebackers remains a bit out of whack though, as Kirkland played 49 snaps — including 20 coverage snaps — while Sapp (24) and Ignont (11) combined for just 35 snaps. Kirkland was again beat up in pass coverage, as he allowed six receptions on six targets (most against AU tailback Malik Miller).
Johnson continues his strong senior season. On tape, he plays with the most explosion of any of Tennessee’s defensive lineman, and the stats back that up. He finished the win with four pressures, a sack and another quarterback hit. He also had two “stops” in the run game, and now has a stop percentage of 10.2, easily tops on the team among the regulars. The next best stop percentage? Phillips at 7.3 percent.
The victory was a nice bounce-back performance by Phillips, who really struggled two weeks ago at Georgia. The former 5-star prospect led the team with three “stops” and also had a sack and three pressures.
In the secondary, Thompson is a budding star. He was targeted eight times, but allowed just three receptions. He did yield the long touchdown due to the missed tackle, but he also came up with an interception and another PBU.
Taylor was picked on a few times Saturday, allowing three receptions on three targets (42 yards). He and Shamburger were also fortunate on Auburn’s drop midway through the fourth quarter, when Darious Slayton ran right past both players for a would-be long touchdown, only to see the ball go right through his hands.
Still, Saturday was one of Shamburger’s better games in his Tennessee career. He played 67 snaps, a career-high, and allowed just a single catch on five targets. He also had multiple PBUs.
The bye focus on fundamentals worked, as the Vols finished the win with just six missed tackles — their fewest in a Power 5 game this season.
As a reminder, this is the PFF grading scale.
< 50 = Bad
50-60 = Average
70-80 = Above Average
80-84 = Good
85 and up = Very, very good.
With that … the Tennessee-Auburn advanced stats…
OFFENSIVE GRADES
- QB Jarrett Guarantano (93.3)
- WR Jauan Jennings (80.7)
- RB Ty Chandler (71.5)
- WR Marquez Callaway (64.2)
- WR Josh Palmer (63.9)
- RG Chance Hall (62.9)
- RT Drew Richmond (61.1)
- C Ryan Johnson (59.4)
- RG Jerome Carvin (58.9)
- LT Trey Smith (57.4)
- LG Nathan Niehaus (56.7)
- TE Dominick Wood-Anderson (57.4)
Staring left guard Jahmir Johnson (60.7) played just 16 snaps before exiting with an injury.
With DWA tweaking a hamstring, Eli Wolf saw 42 snaps — a career high. Wolf was fairly effective, too, especially as an extra pass blocker in max protection.
Guarantano graded out as the top quarterback in the country Saturday, going 8 of 14 for 232 yards and two touchdowns on throws over 10 yards. On the game, he averaged 10.3 yards per attempt — his second highest ypa vs. a Power 5 team in his career.
The second-year starter was drilled on one throw where the ball hung in the air like a 500 toss, but no Auburn defender was around the football. Otherwise, Guarantano did an excellent job vs. pressure, going 6 of 12 for 146 yards and two scores against AU’s blitzes. I noted this in my review piece, but it was strange that Tennessee didn’t call more play-action shots Saturday. The Vols had success when they did, but just 14 percent of JG’s drop-backs were off play-action — his lowest percentage against a Power 5 team this season.
Finally, with Chandler more involved in the passing game, 33 percent of Guarantano’s completions came behind the line of scrimmage (7 of 9 for 44 yards).
Tennessee’s rushing numbers were abysmal, as 19 of 32 designed runs went for 1 yard or less. Chandler and Jordan combined for 76 yards on 29 carries — 58 of those yards coming after contact, per PFF.
On interior runs between the guards and center, Tennessee averaged 1.5 yards per rush on 18 such attempts. That’s the definition of bullheaded.
Ryan Johnson was the only o-lineman with a passing run blocking grade … and he barely managed that at 60.0.
Hall came in next at 59.0, Richmond was at 58.2, Carvin at 57.3, Niehaus at 54.6 and Smith at 51.8 with a holding penalty.
Tennessee allowed nine pressures against AU — the same number as the Georgia game. The difference was Guarantano was hurried half the time compared to the loss at UGA. Smith, Richmond and Carvin were all victimized by sacks, but Smith finished with his best game as pass protector this season Saturday. He allowed two pressures, but overall, he did a nice job against Marlon Davidson and Big Cat Bryant. On the flip side, going up against Russell and Derrick Brown, Ryan Johnson allowed the most pressure on the afternoon.
Notably though, Hall was fantastic as an interior pass blocker. Many remember him getting beat inside on his very first snap against West Virginia, but in 15 pass blocking snaps, Hall graded out at 82.5. Also, Jordan deserves a hat-tip for his improvement in blitz pickup. I posted the GIF of his block to setup Callaway’s first long gain, but he had two other nice pickups as well. Remember his ghastly performance against UF? That 18.9 grade? Jordan had a pass blocking grade of 80.1 Saturday. That’s evidence of tangible growth.
At wideout, Tennessee did a nice job scheming new ways to get Jauan Jennings the football. He caught his touchdown as a normal X wideout, but the redshirt junior lined up in the slot a bunch Saturday. He also worked more inside routes on tunnel screens and digs. It’s a smart way to use a guy like Jennings, who is big, physical and reliable. On the day, four of his five catches were between the numbers.
Jennings had a great grab over Jordyn Peters, but it was Javaris Davis (No. 13) who Tennessee clearly sought to exploit in 1-on-1 coverage. On the day, the Vols were 4 of 5 for 110 yards and a touchdown against Davis. Three of the receptions were 25+ yard gains.
DEFENESIVE GRADES
- CB Bryce Thompson (83.1)
- DT Alexis Johnson (76.9)
- MLB Daniel Bituli (76.8)
- OLB Jonathan Kongbo (73.4)
- CB Alontae Taylor (69.4)
- DE Kyle Phillips (68.1)
- CB Shawn Shamburger (64.4)
- LS Nigel Warrior (64.3)
- OLB Darrell Taylor (62.9)
- DT Shy Tuttle (61.8)
- CB Baylen Buchanan (60.3)
- MLB Darrin Kirkland Jr. (47.5)
In terms of snaps, Bain played 17 snaps, Gooden got 25 (the most in a Power 5 game this season) and Osborne saw 22 (a career-high).
The snap distribution for the middle linebackers remains a bit out of whack though, as Kirkland played 49 snaps — including 20 coverage snaps — while Sapp (24) and Ignont (11) combined for just 35 snaps. Kirkland was again beat up in pass coverage, as he allowed six receptions on six targets (most against AU tailback Malik Miller).
Johnson continues his strong senior season. On tape, he plays with the most explosion of any of Tennessee’s defensive lineman, and the stats back that up. He finished the win with four pressures, a sack and another quarterback hit. He also had two “stops” in the run game, and now has a stop percentage of 10.2, easily tops on the team among the regulars. The next best stop percentage? Phillips at 7.3 percent.
The victory was a nice bounce-back performance by Phillips, who really struggled two weeks ago at Georgia. The former 5-star prospect led the team with three “stops” and also had a sack and three pressures.
In the secondary, Thompson is a budding star. He was targeted eight times, but allowed just three receptions. He did yield the long touchdown due to the missed tackle, but he also came up with an interception and another PBU.
Taylor was picked on a few times Saturday, allowing three receptions on three targets (42 yards). He and Shamburger were also fortunate on Auburn’s drop midway through the fourth quarter, when Darious Slayton ran right past both players for a would-be long touchdown, only to see the ball go right through his hands.
Still, Saturday was one of Shamburger’s better games in his Tennessee career. He played 67 snaps, a career-high, and allowed just a single catch on five targets. He also had multiple PBUs.
The bye focus on fundamentals worked, as the Vols finished the win with just six missed tackles — their fewest in a Power 5 game this season.
