KNOXVILLE — Butch Jones is set to take on South Carolina for the fifth time in his Tennessee tenure and has only lost one time in the series.

That one loss was huge. It derailed his team from controlling its destiny in the race for the SEC East crown last season. That loss also was the starting point for fans voicing displeasure toward Jones.

Saturday’s game will be Jones’ fourth contest against Will Muschamp, and Jones has yet to defeat the former Florida head coach, losing to him in 2013 and 2014 against the Gators and last season against the Gamecocks.

After a 3-2 start that has included a last-play loss at Florida, a four-point win against a winless UMass team and the first shutout loss the program has suffered since 1994, Jones has little margin for error if he wants to coax Vols fans off the ledge.

Jones said on his weekly radio show Vol Calls that his Tennessee teams have been in situations like this before and have finished strong.

If that is going to happen again, it needs to start now.

Here are five reasons Saturday’s game is pivotal for Jones and his program:

A win might quiet some critics

A win over South Carolina would be huge for Jones, especially if quarterback Jarrett Guarantano is able to provide a spark for Team 121. It certainly wouldn’t silence all the noise, but a loss — especially a bad loss — would create a deafening roar from an already hostile fan base.

Beating Will Muschamp is something

It is time for Jones to take a “next step” with the program. He has done that over the last two seasons by finally getting over the Georgia and Florida humps. The fifth-year head coach now needs to prove that his program is continuing to go in the right direction by ending a three-game winless streak to Muschamp. With a breakthrough SEC East title seemingly out of reach, Jones needs something to hang his hat on.

Recovery in recruiting

Some verbal Tennessee commits for the 2018 class have expressed their desire to re-open their recruitment as the last three games have unfolded. It is never good to fall behind in recruiting, and especially with an early signing day in December this year. A win over South Carolina might ease commits’ concerns about Jones and the state of the Tennessee program.

Keeping a good name

Whatever happens during the remaining seven games for Tennessee, Jones needs to finish out the season to the best to his ability even if he is not retained for next season. Jones needs to keep a good name in order to land on his feet in another coaching job. His new agent, Jimmy Sexton, is known for landing coaches jobs when needed. Jones has proven he can bring stability to a program and can be successful in recruiting, selling points despite this season’s struggles.

Avoiding an 0-4 conference start

Sitting at 0-2 in conference play with a road game at Alabama next week is not what Tennessee envisioned to start the season. With the Tide on deck, the Vols almost assuredly are doomed to an 0-4 conference start if they lose on Saturday.

The last time that happened was in 2014, Jones’ second season, when the Vols finished 7-6. That season, a winning record suggested progress was being made. This season, 7-6 with a loss to the Gamecocks most certainly would not.