Josh Heupel reacts to late hit by Tennessee defense on kneel down

At the end of the Tennessee Volunteers‘ loss in The Swamp to the Florida Gators, Josh Heupel took a timeout. He did that with seconds remaining and a two-score deficit. This forced the Gators to run another play, which saw quarterback Graham Mertz hit hard while kneeling down.

After the game, Heupel explained what happened and why it was important for Tennessee to try and make a play.

“That sequence right there, we’re trying to get the ball back, right,” Josh Heupel said. “Trying to take a shot at the endzone. I don’t know if we’re gonna have enough time for an onside and maybe get it and get a shot back, but you’re trying to finish and compete the right way.”

Mertz was trying to run out the clock and prevent Tennessee from getting the ball back before kneeling on the ball. As pressure got to him, he gave himself up by taking a knee but got hit anyway. That started a fight between the two teams, making for an ugly ending.

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— wow that was crazy (@CowardlyDoggo) September 17, 2023

Josh Heupel added that he wants his team to be composed but does think that you need to go tackle a player who is killing the clock.

“He’s dancing around. Do you want the targeting? Obviously not, but the guy’s dancing around, so you’ve got to go tackle the guy too. So, do we want to be composed in that situation and all situations? Absolutely.”

The loss dropped Tennessee to 2-1 on the season and 0-1 in SEC play. Concerns about Tennessee’s offense aren’t going away, either. For their part, the Gators went to 2-1 and 1-0 in SEC play.

The Tennessee game was a ‘must win’ for Billy Napier

For head coach Billy Napier, it was a massive win, with analyst Paul Finebaum calling it a “must win” game ahead of time for Florida.

“Here I go after telling myself I wouldn’t go into overdrive but I’m going to because this is a must win game for Billy Napier. Now you can interpret that any way you want because he’s got a $30 million price tag,” Finebaum said.

“Scott Strickland, a very, very outstanding athletic director has been behind him and I think he can save him and get him to the next season. But in terms of the noise, nobody can stop the noise for Billy Napier, if this game goes poorly. I’m not saying, I’m not promoting a moral victory in Florida, and by the way, Steve Spurrier has reminded me every time I’ve ever seen him that he was 4-0 against Peyton Manning. We’re talking the 90’s here okay, we’re not talking about yesterday. So this game matters greatly.”