After two rough weeks, Jeremy Pruitt’s Tennessee Volunteers got their first win of the 2019 season, blowing out UT Chattanooga 45-0.

It was a much-needed victory for the second-year coach and his squad after people have been speculating the coach’s job status and prominent media members including the College GameDay crew saying it’s time for Tennessee to panic. A big, blowout win – even if its just UT Chattanooga – should improve everyone’s morale on Rocky Top.

Here are some of the highlights of what Pruitt told reporters in his postgame press conference:

  • “It’s really nice for these guys to get a win.”
  • “We definitely improved from last week to this week.”
  • Jahmir Johnson was a little banged up, so coaches decided to hold him out.
  • “We’ve gotta be more consistent on each side of the ball.”
  • Whether your defense gets turnovers is determined by a certain attitude of play.
  • “We took care of the ball on offense which is the most important thing.”
  • On Jeremy Banks’ first INT, Pruitt joked that most good running backs make the first guy miss.
  • On Tyler Byrd: He’s one of UT’s best special teams players.
  • On backup QBs: No separation – both have done some good things, but also made bad decisions.
  • “It’s good that we got Daniel Bituli to play. He needed to play.”
  • On Jarrett Guarantano: He’s our quarterback and he’ll be our quarterback until we decide he’s not. He’s proven he’s our QB.
  • “In the first three weeks, Henry To’oto’o has played as good as anybody.”