Alex Golesh: Tennessee has earned the right to be confident

Tennessee offensive coordinator Alex Golesh met with the media on Tuesday after one of the biggest triumphs of his career – taking down the Alabama Crimson Tide and putting up 52 points with his offense to do it.

Golesh discussed the rewarding feeling that came over him after the win.

“I think rewarding is a good word,” Golesh said on Tuesday. “The amount of work everybody has put in is the rewarding part. We got here January 28th, a year and a half ago, and it’s been a lot of work, to say the least. I think just to reap the rewards of that is obviously rewarding.”

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Golesh: ‘We went into that game and we expected to win’

Golesh went on to praise his players for exerting the effort that they did for all four quarters. He also revealed that prior to the game, he told the Vols that they have “earned the right to be confident.”

“I think the end result was going to be what the end result was going to be,” Golesh said. “We don’t control the true end result of that. But the fact that our kids just continued to play hard. We played really hard in that game offensively. Our O-line played really hard. Our wideouts played really hard, our tight ends, running backs, the quarterback. The rewarding part is that we went into that game and we expected to win. And I told those guys on Friday that, ‘You have earned the right to be confident.’

“You earn the right to be confident throughout the week, and how we practiced Tuesday and Wednesday and Thursday and Friday, and their process leading up to it. I keep using that word, but you have to earn the right to win every week. You earn the right to win every week in how you control your process, in how we practice, in how we study film and the extra time it takes. There’s a lot that goes into a win. There’s a lot that goes into just playing a game. And the rewarding part is for everybody involved, including our families. That’s why I bring up my family, to see them and everything they’ve sacrificed, that’s the rewarding part.”

Tennessee shoots up in odds for CFP

Josh Heupel’s squad jumped up in Las Vegas’ odds for the CFP and national title this week following their win. They’re now sixth with +1720 odds to win the championship.

The Tennessee Volunteers are now 6-0 on the year and the path to the SEC title is clear. Up ahead on Saturday, the Vols take on UT Martin at 12 p.m. ET. The competition level spikes right back up after the Week 8 matchup as Kentucky and Georgia get their shot to break the streak.