Vols try to get offense back to full production

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Tennessee&#39;s offense struggled in a win over Alabama, and offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe said he should take the blame for the plays called and lack of execution.<br> <br> ``I didn&#39;t call a great game. I&#39;d like to have some calls back, but the worst thing I did was I didn&#39;t have our team executing and prepared and that&#39;s my responsibility coming off that practice field,&#39;&#39; Cutcliffe said Tuesday during the Volunteers&#39; weekly media day.<br> <br> Eighth-ranked Tennessee (6-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) had a week off before hosting the Crimson Tide. In the previous game, the Vols beat Georgia 51-33, and the 21-20 loss to Florida in September was the only game in which Tennessee had not scored over 30 points. Cutcliffe, who returned to his old job this season to replace Randy Sanders, made 30 points a goal every game.<br> <br> The Vols, who travel to South Carolina (5-2, 3-2) on Saturday, couldn&#39;t get much going in the run game against Alabama and relied on passing. Quarterback Erik Ainge did not play as well as he had in other games this season and had three interceptions in the first half. One interception happened at the end of the second quarter and time ran out.<br> <br> Coach Phillip Fulmer said Ainge&#39;s mechanics were ``out of whack,&#39;&#39; but he was proud of the team for rallying.<br> <br> ``Bouncing back after the first-half turnovers was good to see. That was another I think big test for us. There wasn&#39;t panic or there wasn&#39;t a sense of frustration or anything. It was just a matter of going back out there and doing a yeoman&#39;s job to be successful,&#39;&#39; Fulmer said.<br> <br> Cutcliffe compared a quarterback&#39;s mechanics to a golfer&#39;s and that even Tiger Woods needs a coach to keep it working. He said he noticed things were off in practice.<br> <br> ``I felt like we had gotten a little out of kilter last week and had some issues in practice and it showed up during the game. I knew it during the game. We were coaching it trying to correct it,&#39;&#39; Cutcliffe said. ``We&#39;ve gone back already this week and had a good day yesterday on creating good habits when it comes to footwork and mechanics.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Ainge was 28-of-46 for 302 yards with no touchdowns.<br> <br> ``If we execute I can think in my mind of five completions that were not hard that if we get those, that number goes way up. That&#39;s what I&#39;m anticipating us doing, getting back to executing like we&#39;re capable of doing,&#39;&#39; Cutcliffe said.<br> <br> Ainge said mechanics can go wrong when ``you&#39;re not in the same mindset ... maybe swinging my hips open a little too early or something to that effect.&#39;&#39; He said the interceptions were his mistakes.<br> <br> ``It was corrected during the game. It&#39;s all from the neck up,&#39;&#39; Ainge said.<br> <br> Intense practice has been a hallmark for the Vols this season with Cutcliffe back as coordinator. Fulmer said the way players have practiced has been better but not yet consistent.<br> <br> ``You&#39;re dealing with young people and sometimes you get full of yourself and start thinking you&#39;re better than you are and maybe you are pretty good, but if you don&#39;t keep your focus and keep your intensity about improving and getting better, any of us are going to have difficulties. We went through a whole year of that,&#39;&#39; Fulmer said.<br> <br> ``They&#39;ve got to listen. I think they&#39;re going to listen right now.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> On the Net:<br> <br> Tennessee football: www.utsports.com

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