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Big Orange Report October 30, 2025

 


Joey Football and the Tennessee Three

In what became a surprising shootout with a great deal of scoring and very little defense, Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar and his three prime time receivers, Chris Brazzell, Mike Matthews and Braylon Staley, led the Big Orange to an important road win over Kentucky in Lexington. Aguilar was a laser in this game, connecting on 20 of 26 passes for 396 yards and three touchdowns. The trio of wideouts all topped the 100-yard plateau on the stat sheets for the Volunteers.
The two teams combined for 90 total points as both defenses struggled for the entire game. Kentucky had not scored two first half touchdowns since 2023 but in the end and for the game, the Wildcats crossed the goal line five times against the feeble and struggling UT defense. Poor preparation and confusion once again reigned for the Tennessee defense. The only three highlights were an interception for a score, a forced fumble and 15 tackles by young linebacker Edwin Spillman.
Sooner or Later
Oklahoma is coming to town still smarting after a loss to Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss. The Rebels scored the last nine points of the game to snatch the victory and leave Norman with a rare SEC road triumph. Ole Miss rolled up almost 450 yards of total offense against the Sooner defense which still ranks near the top of the league in most of the defensive categories statistically.
The 14th ranked Vols and the 18th ranked Sooners will tee it up at 6:30 on Saturday and the game will be televised on the ABC network. For all practical purposes, this one figures to be a playoff elimination battle with the loser having no real chance to be included in the NCAA tournament in December.
Key Matchups
John Mateer vs. Joey Aguilar-- Of course the other ten guys on offense always have a bearing on how the field general performs in the heat of battle. Route running by the receivers, blocking by the offensive front and ball carriers working the ground game all factor into the outcome. However, these two quarterbacks will be judged by their ability to be accurate with the football, making the correct reads of a pass defense and changing a play pre-snap in order to produce positive yardage and move the football down the field. Mateer struggled some in the loss to Ole Miss. He completed only 17 of 32 passes and at least three times mis-read the coverages and did not see a wide open receiver in the middle of the field.
Both quarterbacks remain among the passing leaders in the SEC and the one that can be razor sharp on Saturday will have the upper hand to lead his team to a crucial win.
Both passers have all-star caliber receivers. Oklahoma's Isaiah Satequn can terrorize single coverage and the Vols' Chris Brazzell and Braylon Staley can also shed a secondary against zone defenses and man to man coverages.
Of course, Aguilar has the bigger hill to climb because he faces a much sturdier defense than does Mateer. Aguilar sits atop the conference statistics in several passing categories but Mateer in also in the top five in most of those listings.
Team defenses vs. the running game-- Sooner tailback Xavier Robinson was impressive against the Rebels. He ran for 109 yards and two touchdowns on just nine carries. Vol running back DeSean Bishop has been solid all season and has put up some impressive numbers as well. The Vol offense line has been moving guys around the last two games but maybe that group can settle in now that freshman David Sanders has assumed the role of starter at right tackle in the blocking front.
Secret Weapon-- Red shirt sophomore tight end Ethan Davis caught a touchdown pass in the Kentucky game after finally returning from injury. He is a very athletic, 6-5, 245 pound receiver that could be the joker in the deck for the Volunteers in this game.
Watch for This-- After leading the conference in sacks after five games, the Vol pass rush has wilted and disappeared. Inside defensive end Dominic Bailey leads the defense with only 4.5 sacks. If the LEOs, the outside pass rushers, can't get home against the young Oklahoma offensive tackles, it could be another long day at the office for the anemic UT defense.

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