The Tennessee Volunteers fell 35-32 in their SEC road debut against No. 12 Georgia. Todd Gurley led the Bulldogs with 208 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries to secure a late-game lead and avoid an upset. But despite the strong performance from Gurley, the Volunteers defense deserves credit for an otherwise outstanding performance.

Gurley’s accolades aside, Tennessee’s defense outplayed Georgia’s offense on Saturday. The Vols forced the Bulldogs to a 1-of-10 third down efficiency and intercepted quarterback Hutson Mason twice. Mason was held to just 147 yards and one touchdown on 16-of-25 passing.

Tennessee’s defense also managed to keep the score close throughout the contest, despite facing one of the nation’s most dominate players. Although Gurley’s performance was outstanding, it wasn’t enough to pull away from a Vols team that many considered to be heavily outmatched. Georgia’s offense was responsible for just seven points in the second half, as Tennessee’s fumble in its own end zone was ultimately the deciding factor.

A.J. Johnson enjoyed a career game, despite his team falling three points shy of an upset. The preseason All-SEC linebacker saw a career-high 17 tackles, including an assisted tackle for loss, in Saturday’s game. Sophomore outside linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin had 10 tackles, including 3.5 for loss and one sack.

Tennessee’s defense played stellar aside from Gurley’s dominant performance. As predicted, the Heisman candidate recorded the individual statistics necessary to continue his campaign. But the Vols defense did everything necessary for the offense to pull of an upset. Excluding some bad breaks– including quarterback Justin Worley’s absence on several possessions– Tennessee was in perfect to beat a ranked opponent on the road due to a strong defensive performance.