Tennessee Survives Upset Bid From Florida 23-17 in OT

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The No. 8 Tennessee Volunteers (5-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) survived an upset bid from the visiting Florida Gators (3-3, 1-2) 23-17 in overtime. Head coach Josh Heupel and the Volunteers are used to winning games pretty convincingly against opponents like the Gators, but this one was a nail-biter. The Volunteers won this one in overtime on a touchdown run by running back Dylan Sampson.

Game Summary

There was a lot of inconsistency on offense for the Volunteers, especially from quarterback Nico Iamaleava. Iamaleava completed 16-of-26 passes for 169 yards with 0 touchdowns and 1 interception.

The only part of the offense that played decent all night was the run game. The Volunteers' running game combined for 43 carries for 143 yards and 3 touchdowns. The majority of the work was coming from Sampson, who had 27 carries for 112 yards and accounted for all 3 touchdowns.

There were not many touchdowns in this one, but the final one that was scored by Sampson proved to be the finisher as the Volunteers took this low-scoring game on their home turf.

Turning Point for Tennessee

Aside from Sampson's touchdown run to end the game, the true turning point in this one was the result of the Gators' only drive in overtime.

That drive ended in a 47-yard missed field goal from kicker Trey Smack.

Missing the field goal really helped the Volunteers as all they needed to win the game was a field goal or touchdown of their own, and they would walk away with the victory.

All it took for the Volunteers to end this one was 5 plays, and 3 of them were taken by Sampson. The drive consisted of: a 3-yard pass from Iamaleava to tight end Holden Staes, an 8-yard run by Sampson, an 11-yard pass from Iamaleava to wide receiver Dont'e Thornton Jr., a 2-yard run by Sampson and a 1-yard run by Sampson for the winning touchdown.

What It Means for Each Team

For the Volunteers, they need to figure out how to make their offensive game plan more consistent and get back to their ways of moving the ball down the field at ease. Up next, the Volunteers will host the No. 7 Alabama Crimson Tide (5-1, 2-1) at 3:30 p.m. EST at Neyland Stadium on Oct. 19 on ABC.

For the Gators, they did a lot of things right in this one but when the offense needed a score the most in overtime, they could not come up with it. They also need to find more consistency on offense and moving the ball down the field. Up next, the Gators will host the Kentucky Wildcats (3-3, 1-3) at 7:45 p.m. EST at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Oct. 19 on SEC Network.