Josh Heupel isn’t used to getting gritty defensive wins, but that’s exactly what he got on Saturday against Texas A&M.

It was a slow offensive night for Joe Milton and the Vols, but the defense stood strong and let them to a signature win over the Aggies. On Sunday, Heupel had high praise for his defensive staff.

“Old school football game. I haven’t been in one like that in a while,” Heupel said on The Josh Heupel Show. “Unbelievable performance. Coach Banks, defensive staff, our players across the board just reseting and competing, the physicality. Dominating performance on the defensive side of the football. The defensive line dominated the game.”

Heupel also praised his offensive line and run game, which 232 yards on the game.

“But I love what we did on the offensive line and the rush game,” Heupel said. “Obviously got to be more efficient in the red zone. But all-in-all, just a great program, culture, competitive mindset, just continuing to compete.”

And Heupel made sure to shoutout his fans after some questioned just how loud Neyland Stadium is.

“I’ll tell you who else did, our fans did too man,” Heupel said. “They were awesome all night long. It was a lot of fun.”

Now Tennessee is looking to ride the momentum of the big win into next week’s rivalry game against Alabama in Tuscaloosa.