Tennessee Vols have plenty to correct in aftermath of loss to Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The sting of a 26-20 loss to Florida remained fresh in Kendal Vickers’ mind as he addressed reporters on Saturday night, and he briefly blanked on Tennessee’s next opponent.

“Go back to Knoxville, watch the film, get ready for Georgia – er, Massachusetts,” said Vickers, UT’s senior defensive tackle.

The Minutemen (0-4) have all the makings of comfort food.

Massachusetts already has lost games against Hawaii, Coastal Carolina, Old Dominion and Temple.

The Vols (2-1) dropped out of the AP and coaches polls on Sunday.

The Vols will have a chance Saturday, when they host UMass (Noon ET, SEC Network), to move past the bitterness of losing to one rival before facing another. UT will host Georgia on Sept. 30.

Tennessee has plenty to correct before then.

Against Florida, the Vols showed the resiliency they displayed in their season opener, when they overcame a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat Georgia Tech 42-41 in double overtime.

On Saturday, UT erased a pair of 10-point deficits in the fourth quarter before the Gators won on a 63-yard Hail Mary on the final play.

More:Anatomy of a Hail Mary: How the Florida Gators beat the Tennessee Vols with one 63-yard pass

“We will never give up,” tight end Ethan Wolf said. “We will never think that we’re beat. We’re going to fight as hard as we possibly can until the clock hits zero.”

But the Vols must address why they were in a position of needing to rally.

Quarterback Quinten Dormady, making his first career SEC start, threw three interceptions against Florida, giving him four picks in the past two games.

Dormady isn’t a threat in the run game like his predecessor, Joshua Dobbs, and he didn’t look particularly comfortable making throws against the Gators after getting flushed from the pocket.

More:Vols' Quinten Dormady isn't the running QB Butch Jones has had in the past

When Dormady has time to set himself, he has shown flashes of his talent. He dropped in a pretty 28-yard touchdown to Wolf amid the fourth-quarter rally.

But the Vols miss injured wide receiver Jauan Jennings, and they haven’t shown they have the weapons in the receiving corps to take full advantage of a pocket passer.

The search continues for more offensive playmakers to step up in support of running back John Kelly (349 yards rushing, 191 receiving) and wide receiver Marquez Callaway (eight catches, 198 yards).

Defensively, the Vols held their own against offensively-challenged Florida, but costly injuries continue to mount.

More:Tennessee Vols safeties Todd Kelly Jr., Evan Berry miss Florida game with injury

Middle linebacker Darrin Kirkland Jr. was lost for the season before it started due to a knee injury. Stronside linebacker Austin Smith, who was set to be a starter, hasn’t played due to an undisclosed injury. Safety Todd Kelly Jr., the team's leading tackler last season, didn’t play against the Gators due to injury. GoVols247 reported that Kelly has a knee injury that might shelve him long term.

Through three games, UT’s only position group that has performed above average is running back, thanks to John Kelly. The Vols have turned to him frequently. He’s averaging 24 touches per game.

He needs help.