UAB lost their third consecutive game of the season against an overpowering Tennessee team on Saturday.
The Blazers held the Volunteers to just 14 points in the first half, before the Vols exploded for 363 yards and three touchdowns in the second half to win the game in a convincing manner, 35-3.
“I thought the first half defensively we came out and played pretty good,”
said UAB head coach Neil Callaway. “We thought in the second half if we could come out and hold them on their first possession and get some points, we might make it a tight ballgame. But as it was, our defense kind of wore down.”
Joe Webb accounted for all but 30 yards of UAB’s total offense but was unable to find the end zone against a tough SEC defense. Webb was 19-for-34 for 167 passing with three interceptions, while running for another 78 yards on 15 carries.
The Blazer defense looked ready from the start, stopping the Volunteers on their opening drive of the game. Despite conceding two touchdowns in the first quarter, UAB’s defense kept them in the game while the offense struggled to move the ball early.
Trailing 14-0, the offense began to gain momentum, making it inside the opponent’s red zone on consecutive drives in the second quarter. UAB drove all the way to the Tennessee 9-yard line before Eric Berry picked off a Webb pass on the goal line.
Freshman cornerback Marquis Coleman gave the Blazers another chance before the half when he intercepted a Jonathan Crompton pass at the Tennessee 44-yard line. Despite the good field position, the offense could not take advantage of the turnover and was shut out going in to halftime.
The second half opened optimistically for the Blazers when senior cornerback Kevin Sanders picked off a Crompton pass near midfield on the Vols’ first drive of the half. Senior place kicker Swayze Waters took advantage of the mistake with a 47-yard field goal to make it 14-3. Waters is now a perfect 4-for-4 on the season and 15-of-19 from beyond 40 yards for his career.
Tennessee responded with an 80-yard drive in which UAB’s defense could do little to stop the Vols from running or passing their way down the field. The drive was capped off by a two-yard Montario Hardesty run to give Tennessee a 21-3 lead with 7:08 left in the quarter.
After a quick UAB three-and-out, Tennessee proved just how important depth is by wearing out a tired Blazer defense with an eight play, 76-yard drive ending with a Lennon Creer touchdown run. After Arian Foster had pounded the Blazer defense all day, a fresh Creer entered the game for Tennessee and ripped a 45-yard run to put the Vols on top 28-3.
After consecutive Webb interceptions, Creer ran down the field against a tired UAB defense and scored on a 3-yard run to make it 35-3 Vols. Tennessee racked up 548 yards and were led by Crompton, who went 19-for-31 throwing for 240 yards while tossing two touchdown passes and two picks. Frantrell Forrest was one of the few bright spots of the day for UAB, catching eight passes for 83 yards in the loss.
The loss dropped UAB to 0-3, while Tennessee improved to 1-1. UAB now returns to Legion Field Saturday to face Alabama State. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.
