Coach Josh Heupel mentioned l gamers should select to not commit expensive penalties.
The 14th-ranked s (2-0) had their most penalized sport of Heupel’s tenure of their n over h. And so they have the fourth-most penalty yards per sport amongst 138 FBS groups via two video games.
Heupel mentioned he talked to the workforce about penalties throughout a video evaluation of the sport on Sept. 14.
“I addressed it in the present day, I went via all of (the penalties)," Heupel mentioned. "Our soccer workforce's received the flexibility to develop into an excellent soccer workforce if we make the alternatives to do the appropriate issues. And I offered the video of it in the present day, and our gamers have gotten to select to not damage the soccer workforce.”
Tennessee dedicated 14 penalties towards h, tied for essentially the most in a single sport beneath Heupel. And it amassed 142 penalty yards, essentially the most of his tenure.
Three false begin fouls on offense and three move interference penalties on reserve cornerback Tim Merritt had been irritating.
However the worst had been three unsportsmanlike conduct penalties when UT gamers misplaced their composure within the fourth quarter whereas ending off the win. Broad receiver Mike Matthews, security Dejuan Lane and defensive lineman Ethan Utley had been every flagged for these fouls.
The Vols want to wash up their penalty downside earlier than beginning SEC play. They’ll play Kennesaw State (1-1) on Sept. 19 (7:45 p.m. ET, SEC Community) at Neyland Stadium to cap the nonconference slate.
The place Tennessee soccer ranks in penalty yards
Tennessee had seven penalties for 60 yards in a n over Furman in Week 1.
By means of two video games, UT averages 101 penalty yards per sport. Solely Syracuse (117.5 ypg), UT-San Antonio (115 ypg) and Connecticut (103 ypg) have averaged extra within the nationwide rankings. And the Vols have essentially the most penalty yards within the SEC by a large margin, with LSU averaging 88 yards because the next-to-last workforce.
Heupel’s groups are often among the many most penalized in faculty soccer. UT ranked 106th in fewest penalty yards in 2021; 124th in 2022; 126th in 2023; 119th in 2024 and seventieth in 2025.
Nonetheless, Heupel’s groups typically have been suffering from pre-snap penalties due to their quick tempo on offense. A few of these are inevitable. However unsportsmanlike conduct penalties are preventable, and Heupel believes that's a decison the Vols should make.
Adam Sparks is the Tennessee soccer beat reporter. E mail >. X, previously often called Twitter>. Assist robust native journalism by subscribing at>.
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This text initially appeared on Knoxville Information Sentinel: e