Jarrett Guarantano
photo by James Boofer
Tennessee’s Daniel Bituli got started early Saturday night. The senior linebacker spent more than 10 minutes on the field at the outset of an SEC football game against Kentucky, racking up five tackles in a vain attempt to keep the Wildcats out of the end zone.
Teammate Jarrett Guarantano, meanwhile, was sitting on a heating table on UT’s sideline with a heating pad on his surgically repaired left hand. The redshirt junior quarterback didn’t get going until the second half, when he was called upon to warm up UT’s offense.
During the final 30 minutes, these two Vols directed an impressive rescue operation. They did their part to help erase a 10-point halftime deficit and deliver a hard-fought 17-13 victory in Lexington, Ky.
The victory gave Tennessee (5-5, 3-3 SEC) its first three-game winning streak since 2016. The Vols are off this week and need just one victory in their final two games, against Missouri and Vanderbilt, to be bowl eligible.
Guarantano reprised his relief role, completing 7-of-8 passes for 115 yards and two touchdowns. His closing act was executing a gutsy third-down call in which he ran 10 yards around right end for a clinching first down inside the final minute.
His performance recalled earlier QB saves this season against South Carolina and Mississippi State.
“They call me the sixth man in the locker room, that’s pretty funny,” Guarantano said afterward in an on-field interview with the SEC Network.
He pivoted into a more serious thought in saying, “Like I’ve said before, I didn’t start out the season the right way like I wanted to. To be able to come in and get some wins for these guys, it means a lot to me. Hopefully it means a lot to them, too.”
Judging by the gathering around him on the field afterward, which included fellow quarterbacks Brian Maurer and J.T. Shrout, Guarantano’s play does matter.
It meant a lot to Bituli.
“We all played our part,” he said. “When the defense was struggling, the offense came in and performed the right way. They got points on the board in the second half. That only motivated us to go out there and play harder for them.”
Bituli kept racking up tackles, eventually reaching a staggering total of 19 (10 solo). He and lineman Ja’Quain Blakely combined to make UT’s final stop of the night and keep the Wildcats out of the end zone when it mattered most with 1:17 left.
“At the end of the day, they can drive the field as much as they want,” Bituli said. “But they have to score points.”
Darel Middleton’s earlier block of an extra-point kick deprived Kentucky of a point, thereby removing the possibility of a game-tying field goal. Bituli said the Vols read Kentucky’s alignment and correctly anticipated an option play. Blakely jammed the play’s progress and Bituli swooped in to finish off Wildcats quarterback Lynn Bowden.
UT Jeremy Pruitt was matter-of-fact afterward in reviewing the victory. He had his reasons to be subdued. Kentucky ran 71 offensive plays and amassed 302 yards of rushing. The Wildcats possessed the football for more than 41 minutes and led 13-0 after their first two drives.
The final goal line stand covered for a Ty Chandler fumble that gave Kentucky possession at UT’s 45-yard line with 7:44 left.
In the midst of his sobering breakdown, however, Pruitt offered an impressive testimonial on behalf of Bituli.
“Daniel is smart; he’s tough, dependable,” Pruitt said. “He’s a great leader. … You want everybody on your team to be like Daniel Bituli. There’s not one characteristic or intangible that’s not great about him.”
He was that guy from the start to the very end against Kentucky.
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Dan Fleser is a 1980 graduate of the University of Missouri who covered University of Tennessee athletics for the Knoxville News Sentinel from 1988-2019. He may be reached at danfleser3@gmail.com
Daniel Bituli
photo by James Boofer