The Tennessee Volunteers challenged the No. 13 Georgia Bulldogs in a 35-32 loss on Saturday. For the second consecutive year, a highly favored Georgia managed to avoid an upset and beat Tennessee by a three point margin.

Tennessee looks to be improved this season and should be more hesitant to take moral victories. However, Saturday’s performance deserves some credit as the Vols looked like a more complete team on both sides of the football than the run-heavy Bulldogs. Aside from Todd Gurley’s staggering 208 yards and two touchdowns, Tennessee outmatched Georgia on both offense and defense.

The Vols held Georgia’s offense to a 1-of-10 third down efficiency. Tennessee also forced Hutson Mason to throw for just 147 yards and two interceptions. Offensively, the Vols looked like a cohesive unit before starting quarterback Justin Worley suffered an elbow injury. Worley missed several possessions between the third and fourth quarter and Nathan Peterman struggled in his absence.

This was the biggest problem I had about Butch Jones’ coaching in the Georgia loss. Why did the Vols elect to go with Peterman over Josh Dobbs? Dobbs struggled when thrown into the fire as a true freshman in 2013, but still showed much more potential than Peterman when either quarterback saw playing time.

Overall, Jones coached an efficient game and challenged a heavily favored opponent on the road. Tennessee is in the right hands moving forward and is making progression in its rebuilding process. However, Jones will need a signature win this season and coach a near-perfect game moving forward for the Vols to make a statement.