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Tennessee is trending upward, appearing to have successfully navigated the meat of the Kiffin Chimera's learning curve. Despite a pretty big hole they dug for themselves early on, several Volunteers are slowly climbing the national rankings in several major statistical categories. Have a look:

Offense

• Jonathan Crompton, tied for 11th in "points responsible for" (1st in the SEC, and behind the likes of Houston's Case Keenum, Boise State's Kellen Moore, BYU's Max Hall, and several players from lower-tier teams)
• Montario Hardesty, 25th in rushing yards per game (4th in the SEC)
• Crompton 35th in passing efficiency (over Joe Cox, Matt Barkley, Greg McElroy, Terrelle Pryor, Stephen Garcia, and Jevan Snead, among others)
• Crompton, 40th in total passing yards (above Joe Cox, Jevan Snead, Matt Barkley, Greg McElroy, Terrelle Pryor, and Tim Tebow, among others)
• Jonathan Crompton: 44th in passing (above Ryan Mallett, Joe Cox, Matt Barkley, Greg McElroy, Jevan Snead, Jordan Jefferson, Chris Todd, Tim Tebow, and Terrelle Pryor, among other notables)
• Crompton, 44th in passing yards per game (above Joe Cox, Jevan Snead, Chris Todd, Greg McElroy, Jordan Jefferson, Tim Tebow, and Terrelle Pryor, among others)
• Montario Hardesty, 56th in all-purpose running

Note that we have no receivers ranked nationally in receptions per game, receiving yards per game, or total receiving yards, which must mean that Crompton is spreading the ball around and the driving force in the passing game.

Defense

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More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

Bryce Brown, with the return of the over-the-pile dive for six.

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If you didn't see it and you're only looking at the final or the box score, the real numbers aren't the double-up on the scoreboard, or the fact that Memphis gained 401 yards and scored more points against Tennessee's defense than anyone has all season.  Any eyebrow-raising is reserved for next season.

Because the real story of this game was told in the first thirty minutes and the first two drives of the second half.  Tennessee had eight possessions in that span, and scored touchdowns on seven of them.  We still don't know if we can kick field goals, because Lane Kiffin and the Vols weren't playing that game tonight.

Instead of settling at any point in the first half, Kiffin and the Vols went for the throat from the first play.  After David Oku set the tone with a 69 yard return on the opening kick, the Vols ran a trick play on their first snap, an incomplete halfback pass.  No matter, the Vols scored five plays later, and we were off to the races.

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Don't let the final score or total stats fool you. The Tennessee Volunteers 56-28 complete and utter beatdown of the Memphis Tigers was over long before the first half came to a close.

First half stats:

• 382 yards total offense
• 305 passing yards
• 5 touchdowns from Jonathan Crompton
• 18 first downs
• Four trick plays, including a surprise onside kick that would have been successful if not for an offsides penalty
• A 28-point second quarter
• A 42-7 halftime lead

All of that allowed us Vol fans to see something we hadn't seen in years: an entire second half devoted to getting the backups real live reps, and a leisurely close to a game that had even the most knowledgeable of us crawling through the roster to see who was on the field. Just remind yourself that the buzz kill in the second half was because we are simply not used to being so far ahead that we burn game time preparing for next season.

And yes, it feels good.

104	Net Yards	382
52	Rush Yards	77
52	Pass Yards	305
7	1st Downs	18
11:23	TOP	18:37
0/5	3rd downs	5/8
0/0	4td downs	2/3
1	INT thrown	0
1/4	Sacks/yards	2/16

So what do you do here? Put in Stephens or let Crompton try to make up for lost time with a 700 yard game? I say the latter. Sorry, Nick. See you next year.

NR (BlogPoll)

@

NR (BlogPoll)

Kickoff: 7 p.m. EST Television: ESPNU Eric Collins, Brock Huard Vol Network Radio: Free Audio | Station List Bob Kesling, Tim Priest and Mike Stowell Live Video Streaming: ESPN360.com Satellite Radio: XM Radio: 199 | Sirius Radio: 219 Live Stats: Gametracker Game Day Information Game Day Activities/Timing Schedule

Jackson the Mule says . . . . . . my father was a Tennessee Walking Mule.

VolnVA wins this week's Hail Mary Haiku with the following:

Memphis Tigers are
More like paper tigers, so
They will be shredded

Leave your pre-, in-, and post-game comments below.

Go Vols!

With yet another night game for the Vols, there's a full day of football before things get serious against Memphis. Here's one recommended viewing schedule for Vol fans again: