The Tennessee Volunteers (2-3) are a difficult puzzle to solve this season. The defense has played stellar, holding opposing offenses to a 25 percent third down conversation rate. The offense, however, has been inconsistent and seems incapable of closing out games.

Tennessee opened its season at 2-0 with dominant wins over Utah State and Arkansas State. In Week 3, the Vols faced a heavily favored No. 11 Oklahoma (then No. 4) in Norman and fell 34-10. The loss exposed Tennessee’s offensive line as an inexperienced group lacking prior starting experience.

Second-year coach Butch Jones needed a signature win following the Oklahoma drubbing and had the opportunities. The Vols fell 35-32 at No. 13 Georgia in Week 5, before dropping a 10-9 loss to Florida last Saturday. In both cases, Tennessee found itself competing the entire game, but costly mistakes led to disappointing losses.

For Jones, a signature win is still a necessity in 2014. Though he remains the most popular man in the Volunteer state, the honeymoon can’t last forever. Granted, Jones salvaged a depleted recruiting class just two months after his December 2012 hire and constructed a top-5 class in 2014, the Vols still lack in several areas.

Tennessee is still in the early stages of its rebuilding process. Jones has made progress with the downtrodden program, but needs to win soon in order to keep fans happy. The Vols have the talent on defense and at skill positions, but lack experience in the trenches and overall depth.

Jones preaches the “brick by brick” philosophy for rebuilding, but right now, Tennessee’s working with a Jenga tower. The second-year coach is aiming high, but removing one piece could cause the tower to fall.

Case in point, the lack of depth at the quarterback position. Had Justin Worley stayed healthy against Georgia, Tennessee would likely win based on his performance before and after the injury. Given Nathan Peterman’s underwhelming showing and Josh Dobbs’ absence due to redshirting, Worley is the only option at quarterback for Tennessee. Again, pulling Worley from the tower– in this case a hypothetical season-ending injury– causes it to fall.

Jones also faces pressure to win early due to the quick turnarounds other SEC East programs have seen. In-state rival Vanderbilt was a proverbial cellar dweller before former head coach James Franklin took over in 2011. Franklin led the Commodores to bowl games in all three years in Nashville and back-to-back nine-win seasons before leaving for Penn State in January.

Mark Stoops, who is also in his second-year, faces a similar path to Jones. Stoops took over a Kentucky program that hasn’t seen a bowl game since 2010 and was winless in the SEC the past two seasons. Like Jones, Stoops made an immediate impact on the recruiting trail, although Tennessee saw a much higher ranking in 2014. However, Kentucky looks like the stronger program through five games and could keep the Vols from a bowl game appearance on Nov. 15 in Knoxville.

Tennessee’s fan base is passionate and rabid. The Vols fans will love you one day and call for your job the next. Midway through his second season, Jones has already made more progress than the previous two coaching regimes. However, he must capture a signature win this season to keep fans satisfied or his rebuilding process could be canceled before fruition.