How 'absolutely relentless' defense secured Tennessee football's win at Pittsburgh
Josh Heupel burst like a giddy kid onto the field at Pittsburgh's Acrisure Stadium on Saturday.
The Tennessee football coach found two of his linebackers — Jeremy Banks and Nick Humphrey — and jumped onto them. He grinned as he grabbed the pair by the helmets, celebrating a marquee nonconference win — one marked not by his trademark offense but by the defense.
“Defensive effort, just in general, absolutely relentless," Heupel said. "The second, third and fourth quarters, that is as good of a performance as I have been around in a long time."
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Tennessee's defense had a banner day in a 34-27 overtime win against No. 14 Pitt (1-1). The Vols (2-0) had 16 quarterback hurries and four sacks, giving a pair of Panthers quarterback fits for 60 minutes and beyond.
They held Pitt scoreless for almost two quarters, spanning the early second until the early fourth. They rose to the occasion repeatedly in that stretch and beyond.
"They got put in bad positions from turnovers and short fields and special teams," Heupel said. "They reset. They played."
Safety Trevon Flowers had a pair of game-changing plays. He picked off Pitt's Kedon Slovis in the back of the end zone in the first quarter, preventing a potential 17-0 Pitt lead. He sacked backup Nick Patti on third down in overtime, effectively the game-ending play. Slovis left with an undisclosed injury at halftime and did not return.
Defensive lineman Omari Thomas deflected a third-down pass from Patti after the Panthers blocked a punt in Tennessee territory in the third quarter. Pitt missed the ensuing field goal and UT held its 24-17 lead.
Defensive back Wesley Walker sacked Slovis on a second-quarter first down, popping the lid on UT's pursuit of the Pitt quarterbacks and setting up the Vols' offense for the go-ahead touchdown.
"The offense always has our back," UT linebacker Byron Young said. "So for us to get to return the favor, that felt great."
UT's lone blemishes defensively were in the first 17 minutes, including a pair of should-have-been interceptions. Pitt running back Israel Abanikanda scored a 76-yard first-quarter touchdown. Tight end Gavin Bartholomew hurdled Flowers for a 57-yard touchdown with 13:25 left in the second.
The defense kept Pitt out of the end zone until the 2:23 mark in the fourth quarter, limiting the Panthers to a field goal in that span.
"They did an unbelievable job in preparing our guys and getting our guys ready," Heupel said of the defensive coaching staff.
Aaron Beasley led UT with 14 tackles and three quarterback hurries. Young had three as well with a sack.
Flowers had the decisive fourth and final sack, flying in to drop Patti after UT's offense scored on the first possession of overtime.
"We love to hear about the offense, and I know the offense loves to hear about us," Thomas said. "They love to put up points, and we love stopping people from putting up points. So it’s all about working together."
Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee football drops Pittsburgh with relentless defense, sacks
