Tennessee's Biggest Key? "Applying Pressure" To Spencer Rattler

South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler has excelled through his first four starts this year. Tennessee Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel previewed how they can slow him.

To put it gently, it's been an interesting road for South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler. The No. 1 quarterback in the 2019 recruiting class started his career hot at Oklahoma before being benched for eventual Heisman Trophy-winner Caleb Williams. Rattler transferred to South Carolina before the 2022 season and had a rough first few months.

But one November game against Tennessee changed it all. Rattler tossed six touchdowns in a 63-point offensive showing against the Vols and has been excellent since. During his opening presser, Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel previewed how Tennesee can slow him down while also updating Rattler's timeline.

On Spencer Rattler's journey after the Tennessee win last year...

"He's a really good player. He's played at a high level. He's played a lot of football. He's playing extremely well right now. He was dynamic in that football game, and he has that in his arsenal. And you know, for us, the line of scrimmage is important, and we've got to do a really good job. We've got to get him in third and long's last year. We didn't get off the field on third and long last year. Some of that was coverage, some of that was him extending and making some really special plays. We've got to do a great job of bottling them up and applying pressure at the same time."

On how Rattler challenges defenses...

"He's played quite a bunch of football. He understands coverages, and he sees rotations. He takes himself to the right spot based on the coverage and the beaters that they have up on their schemes. He's got the ability to extend and make plays with his feet. He's accurate with the football; you've got to do a great job. You've got to control the line of scrimmage, and you've got to apply pressure to him. You can't let him out of the pocket at the same time. When he does scramble, you've got to match the personnel out in space. He created a bunch of big plays against us last year outside of the pocket. He's a really good football player that poses a problem. We've got to do a really good job up front and on the second and third levels in our coverage."

South Carolina QB Spencer Rattler was under duress during a loss to Georgia. (Photo by Dale Zanine of USA Today Sports)

How To Watch: South Carolina @ Tennessee

• Gameday: Saturday, September 30th, 2023.
• Game time: 7:30 pm ET
• TV: SEC Network
• Stadium: Neyland Stadium (Knoxville, Tennessee)
• Live stream on fuboTV: Start with a 7-day free trial!

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