Joey Aguilar completed 15 of 22 passes for 218 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, and No. 15 Tennessee cruised to a 56-24 win over UAB on Saturday afternoon in Knoxville, Tenn.
DeSean Bishop rushed for two touchdowns for Tennessee (3-1), which bounced back from an overtime loss against then-No. 6 Georgia a week ago. Star Thomas had one rushing touchdown and one receiving touchdown.
Jalen Kitna completed 38 of 51 passes for 364 yards, two touchdowns and one interception for UAB (2-2). Kaleb Brown led the Blazers with 79 receiving yards to go along with a touchdown.
Tennessee outgained UAB 510-394, including a 235-23 advantage in rushing yards.
The Volunteers sprinted to a 21-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Aguilar started the scoring on the opening drive, which ended with a 19-yard catch by Chris Brazzell II. The wideout caught the ball near the 10-yard line and slipped past a defender for the touchdown.
Mike Matthews made it 14-0 with a 39-yard touchdown catch less than two minutes later. He beat his defender down the left sideline and caught Aguilar’s pass in stride.
Bishop capped the first-quarter scoring with a 3-yard run.
Tennessee increased its lead to 28-0 with 10:44 left in the half. Thomas punched in a 1-yard run to complete a 10-play, 60-yard scoring drive.
UAB snapped the shutout on the following possession. Kitna connected with Brandon Hawkins Jr. for a catch and run that resulted in a 30-yard touchdown.
The Volunteers added two more touchdowns to seize a 42-7 lead at the half. Peyton Lewis recorded a 32-yard rushing touchdown with 2:50 remaining, and Bishop tallied his second score of the day on a 2-yard run with 32 seconds to go before halftime.
UAB pulled within 42-10 on a 45-yard field goal by Jonah Delange early in the third quarter.
Thomas scored his second touchdown and his first through the air when he caught a 17-yard touchdown catch from Aguilar with 9:53 left in the third quarter.
Tennessee’s defense followed with a score on a 23-yard fumble return by Kaleb Beasley.
UAB finished the scoring with back-to-back touchdowns. Kitna hit Brown for a 61-yard touchdown late in the third quarter, and Isaiah Jacobs rushed for a 1-yard score late in the fourth quarter.
