Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt's full press conference
Pruitt on linebacker Quart'e Sapp leaving the field during the game:
“Since I have been here, Quart’e has been a really good ambassador to our program. He has done everything that we have asked him to do, but he left the field during the game because he would not go into the game when he was asked too. I do not know how things were done before, but when you tell somebody to go in and they refuse to go in… We are not going to do that around here. He did not leave on his own, I asked him to leave. ”
On if Sapp has left the team:
"Well, I don't think right now is the time to discuss that, but to me there is no secrets. It is what it is."
On the health and play of quarterback Jarrett Guarantano:
“I think Jarrett’s going to be fine. Jarrett’s tough. I knew that when I came here. He’s learning on the go and he’s maturing. I think he’s a guy that’s going to be a really good quarterback one day. I like the way he’s growing into it. But we have to give the guy a chance a little bit. He can’t take as many hits when he’s not looking. I thought tonight he got rid of the ball on time. There’s been a few times this year that maybe he held the ball too long, but we just have to keep them off of him.”
Center Ryan Johnson
On preparing for the road game against No. 2 Georgia:
“It’s going to be a quick turnaround. You’ve got to wipe clear. Especially as an offensive lineman, that’s a motto that I take to heart. You can’t focus on the past, because if you do, you’ll drown in it. The only thing you can do is look back and learn from your mistakes and just get better. I think that’s what we’re going to do as a team. We’re going to prepare, we’re going to get ready, and we’re going to focus on ourselves. Because we need to focus on ourselves. It’s not about the other team, it’s about us. We need to execute better, we need to play better, and we need to go and focus as a team.”
On the play of quarterback Jarrett Guarantano:
"Jarrett's a really good player, I really like blocking for him. He's really tough and I expect nothing less, he's a good player and I really respect him for that, for being in there, staying in there, staying tough. I really respect that."