Postgame Notes: #12/12 Tennessee 34, Arkansas 31

TENNESSEE FOOTBALL POSTGAME NOTES
Oct. 11, 2025 | Knoxville, Tenn. | Neyland Stadium
FINAL SCORE: No. 12/12 Tennessee 34, Arkansas 31
General Notes

Saturday's attendance at Neyland Stadium: 101,915 (sold out)
- Neyland Stadium was sold out for the 24th consecutive contest.
Tennessee's all-time on-field record improved to 891-418-53 with Saturday's win (NCAA record: 880-418-53).
Saturday marked the 21st all-time meeting between the Volunteers and Razorbacks and the first matchup in Knoxville since 2015.
- Tennessee improved its record in the series to 14-7, earning its first victory over Arkansas since 2007 and snapping a four-game skid against the Razorbacks.
- The Vols own a 7-2 record against Arkansas in Neyland Stadium, dating back to the programs' first meeting in Knoxville in 1992.
Josh Heupel earned his 70th career victory as a head coach on Saturday, compiling a 42-16 record at Tennessee (2021-present) and a 28-8 mark at UCF (2018-20) – good for a .745 career win percentage.
- Heupel is one of five active FBS head coaches who have won 70 FBS games with a winning percentage of over .740 – joining Ohio State's Ryan Day (.878, 72 wins), Georgia's Kirby Smart (.845, 109 wins), Clemson's Dabo Swinney (.791, 178 wins) and Southern Cal's Lincoln Riley (.775, 86 wins).
In the Josh Heupel era (2021-present), Tennessee owns a 5-1 record after an open week. The Vols are 87-50-9 all-time after open dates and 53-36-2 after open weeks in league play.
- Tennessee has outscored opponents by 45 points, 181-136, under Heupel following open dates with wins at No. 18 Kentucky (2021), at No. 25 LSU (2022), vs. Texas A&M (2023), vs. Kentucky (2024) and vs. Arkansas (2025).
The Vols own a 28-5 record in Neyland Stadium under Josh Heupel and are 23-2 in the venue since the start of the 2022 season. The 23 home wins during that span are tied with Alabama for most in the SEC.
- Tennessee is 24-1 vs. unranked teams in Neyland Stadium under Heupel, with 23 victories in a row.
Saturday marked UT's lone home game in the month of October. The Vols have won seven straight home contests in October dating back to the 2022 season and own an 8-1 October home record under Josh Heupel, with the lone loss coming against No. 13 Ole Miss on Oct. 16, 2021.
Tennessee Athletics hosted Champions Weekend Oct. 10-11, inviting teams and individuals who won SEC and/or NCAA championships during specific years back to Rocky Top to celebrate their achievements.
- Football honorees included the 1985 and 1990 regular season SEC Championship squads as they commemorated the 40- and 35-year anniversary of their respective conference titles.
- Additionally, former Vol national champion head coach and athletics director Doug Dickey was recognized during Saturday's contest. Tennessee recently announced the installation of Championship Corner on the southwest end of Neyland Stadium, set for completion in the fall of 2026. The new Championship Corner will serve as a tribute to the Volunteers' proud championship tradition and be available for fans to view year-round. Bronze pillars will be designed honoring Dickey and Phillip Fulmer, while the Gen. Robert Neyland statue will relocate to Championship Corner and serve as a centerpiece to the welcoming plaza.

Vol Captains/Coin Toss

Tennessee's team captains for Saturday's game: RB DeSean Bishop, LS Bennett Brady, DL Jaxson Moi, DB Andre Turrentine
Arkansas won the toss and elected to receive the opening kick. Tennessee defended the south end zone.

Team Offensive Notes

Tennessee racked up 485 yards (221 passing, 264 rushing) in Saturday's victory. Josh Heupel's Tennessee teams have generated more than 400 yards of total offense in 43 games since 2021.
- It also marked the 36th time a Heupel-led Tennessee team recorded 450-plus yards, including the 21st time posting 475-plus.
- Tennessee has produced 200 rushing yards 34 times in the Heupel era and own a 32-2 recording when doing so, including 25 wins in a row.
Tennessee's offensive line did not surrender a sack for the third time this season and first time in SEC play.
Tennessee has scored in 2:31 or fewer on its opening drive—four touchdowns and two field goals—in every game this season. The six drives have taken an average of just 2:17 per possession.
- The Volunteers scored in 2:14 against Syracuse, in 1:52 versus ETSU, in 2:30 against Georgia, in 2:04 versus UAB, in 2:30 at Mississippi State and in 2:31 against Arkansas.
The Vols have now registered at least one touchdown in the first quarter in 46 of its 58 games under Josh Heupel.
Tennessee has posted at least one passing play of 39-plus yards in all six contests this season. In five of those games, including Saturday against Arkansas, they have tallied a reception of at least 41 yards.

Individual Offensive Notes

Redshirt freshman WR Braylon Staley reached triple-digit receiving yards for the first time in his career, finishing the night with six grabs for 109 yards. In the first half alone, he hauled in five receptions for 105 yards.
- The 42-yard grab by Staley late in the second quarter marked the second-longest catch of his career.
- Staley has now recorded 95-plus yards in half of Tennessee's games this season after logging 21 receiving yards during his entire freshman season in 2024.
Senior TE Miles Kitselman pulled in his second receiving touchdown of the season with an 8-yard grab to tie the game at 17-17 with 2:52 remaining in the first half. He finish the game with a season-best five catches for 56 yards.
- Vol tight ends have scored touchdowns in three of six games this season and four out of the last seven regular season contests.
- In the Josh Heupel era (since 2021), tight ends have accounted for 32 touchdowns – 26 receiving and six rushing.
Redshirt sophomore RB DeSean Bishop amassed 100-plus rushing yards for the second time as a collegian, finishing with a career-best 146 yards on 14 carries. He entered triple digits within the first minute of the third quarter and had his career high before the end of the period.
- Bishop became the fourth Tennessee running back—QB Joshua Dobbs did it twice—in the last 19 seasons (2007-25) to total 140-plus rushing yards and average 10-plus yards per carry, including the only one to do so in a home SEC contest. Two of the prior three instances—all of which are listed below—also came under Josh Heupel.
  - Jaylen Wright had 160 yards on five carries at Vanderbilt on Nov. 26, 2022.
  - Tiyon Evans had 156 yards on 15 carries at Missouri on Oct. 2, 2021.
  - Ty Chandler had 158 yards on 12 carries versus UTEP on Sept. 15, 2018.
- Entering Saturday, just one other SEC running back—Missouri's Ahmad Hardy, who did it twice—had a game this season with 140-plus rushing yards while averaging 10-plus yards per carry. Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green also previously achieved the feat in 2025.
  - The last running back to notch that line in SEC play was Arkansas' Braylen Russell, who did so on Oct. 26, 2024, at Mississippi State. The last to do it, regardless of position, was Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe on Nov. 9, 2024, at LSU.
Sophomore RB Peyton Lewis plunged in for a pair of rushing touchdowns in the second half, carding his second career game with multiple touchdown rushes. His scores came from two and three yards out.
- The Vols have posted three multi-touchdown efforts on the ground this season, with Star Thomas notching three against ETSU on Sept. 6 and DeSean Bishop notching two against UAB on Sept. 20.
Senior QB Joey Aguilar completed 16-of-25 passes for 221 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. The Vol signal caller has thrown for over 200 yards in all 30 FBS starts of his career, which is the longest active streak in Division I.
- Aguilar also rushed for 59 yards on five carries, including a 28-yard tote late in the fourth quarter.
  - The 59 yards for Aguilar marked the second-most of his career and his third time—first as a Volunteer—notching at least 50.
  - The 11.8 yards per carry for Aguilar far surpassed his prior career best of 8.7 per rush, set on Nov. 2, 2024, against Old Dominion, during his tenure at Appalachian State.
  - Aguilar is the fourth SEC quarterback—sixth occurrence— in the last three seasons (2023-25) to amass 55-plus rushing yards while averaging at least 10 yards per carry.
    - Alabama's Jalen Milroe (once in 2024), LSU's Jayden Daniels (three times in 2023) and Arkansas' Jacolby Criswell (once in 2023) are the only others to do it over that stretch.

Team Defensive Notes

The Vols logged four forced fumbles in Saturday's contest, marking its most in a single game of the Josh Heupel/Tim Banks era and its most in a single game overall since having four at Kentucky on Oct. 28, 2017.
Tennessee recovered three of the fumbles it forced, marking the fifth time in the last 20 seasons (2006-25) it had at least three fumble recoveries in one game.
- The prior four instances are listed below.
  - Four at Kentucky on Oct. 28, 2017.
  - Five against Virginia Tech in Bristol, Tenn., on Sept. 10, 2016.
  - Three against Vanderbilt on Nov. 23, 2013.
  - Three against South Carolina on Oct. 31, 2009.
- In addition, Saturday was the fourth time Tennessee recovered multiple fumbles under Heupel/Banks. The last such occurrence came on Sept. 21, 2024, at Oklahoma.
After giving up a touchdown to go down by seven, 17-10, with 4:36 left in the second quarter, the Tennessee defense did not allow a point for the next 26:29, until just 8:17 remained. During that time, the Volunteers scored 24 unanswered points.
Tennessee amassed five sacks during Saturday's contest after racking up six during the prior contest at Mississippi State. The Vols entered Week 7 tied for second in the FBS with 21 sacks and now have 26 on the season.
By forcing three turnovers and committing none on the other side of the ball, Tennessee finished plus-three in the turnover margin in an SEC game for the second time in the last seven years.
- The prior instance—also in the Josh Heupel era—came on Oct. 29, 2022, versus Kentucky, when the Volunteers had three takeaways and no giveaways.

Individual Defensive Notes

Sophomore DL Jordan Ross created the first takeaway of the game with his first-career strip sack in the first quarter, recovering the fumble as well and returning it 10 yards.
- The play also marked the first forced fumble and the first fumble recovery of Ross' career.
- The Vols, who came into the game leading the SEC this season in forced fumbles, have forced and recovered a fumble in five of six contests this season.
In his season debut, junior DL Daevin Hobbs recorded five tackles in the first half alone to set a new career high for a full game. One of the tackles was his first-career solo sack, doubling his career sacks total.
With 9:47 remaining in the third quarter, sophomore DB Edrees Farooq tallied the first forced fumble of his career and junior LB Arion Carter came up with the ball for the first fumble recovery of his career.
- Additionally, Farooq capped the night with nine tackles to set his career high.
Tennessee recorded another fumble inside the 20-yard-line—this time on the Arkansas side of the field—on the second play of the fourth quarter. Senior DL Joshua Josephs registered his sixth-career forced fumble, and freshman LB Jadon Perlotte picked it up for his first collegiate fumble recovery.
Redshirt senior DB Andre Turrentine accumulated a career-high-tying 11 tackles, his third collegiate performance with double digit stops. All three have come this season in SEC play.

Special Teams Notes

Redshirt sophomore PK Max Gilbert drilled a game-tying 37-yard field goal with 10:35 left in the second quarter. He then added a 50-yard go-ahead field goal with 11:50 remaining in the third quarter to give the Volunteers their first lead, 20-17.
- With the two made field goals, Gilbert improved to 10-of-12 on the season.
Gilbert also hit all four of his extra-point attempts, improving to 88-of-88 in his career. He is 34-of-34 in 2025 alone.

Career Highs

The following players set or tied career highs in the respective statistical categories listed below:

Offense

WR Braylon Staley
- 109 receiving yards
RB DeSean Bishop
- 146 rushing yards
RB Peyton Lewis
- 2 rushing touchdowns (ties career high)

Defense/Special Teams

LB Arion Carter
- 1 fumble recovery
DB Edrees Farooq
- 9 tackles
- 1 forced fumble
DL Daevin Hobbs
- 5 tackles
- 1.0 sack
- 1 forced fumble
LB Jadon Perlotte
- 1 fumble recovery
DL Jordan Ross
- 1.5 tackles for loss
- 1.5 sacks
- 1 forced fumble
DB Andre Turrentine
- 11 tackles (ties career high)
DB Sidney Walton
- 3 tackles

University of Tennessee Athletics

Players Mentioned

Joey Aguilar

DeSean Bishop

Bennett Brady

Arion Carter

Edrees Farooq

Max Gilbert

Daevin Hobbs

Joshua Josephs

Miles Kitselman

Peyton Lewis

Jaxson Moi

Jadon Perlotte

Jordan Ross

Braylon Staley

Star Thomas

Andre Turrentine

Sidney Walton

Related Videos