Q. Did you know right away that you picked it off?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: Yeah, for sure.
Q. How critical was that obviously just to get the ball back, especially when the offense gave it away a few plays earlier?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: It was a big play. I was just glad to give them another chance. We were down. We needed that big play. Needed a big spark. Needed to shift the momentum. I'm just glad it came to me.
Q. What's it say about Jalen Kimber that he breaks his hand on a Wednesday, practices on Thursday, hadn't missed a practice, and then makes the play like he does the other night?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: That was another big play we needed, that game changing play. I'm happy for him. I know he's going through a little something with his hand, but for him to just keep playing, and instead of going through and going to get surgery on it and stuff and toughing it out, that was big for him. He had a big moment in the game, so I'm happy for him.
Q. He was beaten on a touchdown a week earlier, the guy made a great play on the ball obviously. But what's that say about just the defensive back mentality in general being able to just put things behind you and move forward?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: It's always next play mentality as DB. Every play is you're reacting to the receiver. So you can't dwell on it. You can't like -- you've got to keep moving forward.
Q. Tennessee is near the top in a lot of passing categories in the SEC. How much do you view that as a challenge, you and the rest of the secondary?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: I don't think I view it as a challenge. They got to come play us like we got to come play them. I love our secondary. We have a bunch of vets in the secondary. Even the younger guys, like they have experience. So I love us.
Q. Their assistant coach says that they have the greatest wide receivers in the country. Have you all seen that? How do you guys react to that?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: That's how he feels, that's how he feels. We're going to see on Saturday. We're going to see on Saturday.
Q. What is the challenge of those guys like Tillman? Tillman is a pretty established guy.
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: They've got a lot of speed over there. They've got some vets, veteran quarterback, good veteran quarterback. It will be a good game.
It's the first away game, road game, SEC, GameDay, like it's a big game for everybody. Can't make the moment too big. We've still got to go out there and play.
Q. What's the challenge with the tempo of that offense and how quickly they like to get lined up?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: We've got to communicate better, communicate faster. I played -- especially on the defensive side, we've got a lot of vets that have played these guys a couple years in a row. We know what to expect. We're not overwhelmed. We understand how the game's going to go.
Q. What did you see from Shemar and Scooby when it comes to communication, making sure everyone is in check for a very early opportunity in their careers?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: That was great. They did a good job this Saturday stepping up. I'm proud of those guys, especially the two young guys coming in and trying to fill big roles behind Ventrell. So I was proud of them two.
Q. Is it easier for you on defense? Talking about the crowd noise, but when their offense is on the field, their place should be pretty quiet. Is it easier for you guys to communicate?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: A lot easier. Especially away game, they want their offense to be able to communicate. So that will make it easier for us.
Q. What was it like not having Ventrell out there, and who were some of the other guys that tried to step up on Saturday, do you think?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: Like you said, Shemar and Scoob, they did a good job. Ventrell, he's a field general out there. It's hard to replace, but those two young guys, they stepped up. They did their job. They played their role exactly how it is.
Q. Was there another older guy, maybe a veteran that helped out too?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: Burney's a vet. He's a guy that we know we want to lead those two young guys in the linebacker room.
Q. What do you remember about the game last year against Tennessee. Can you take anything away from that game even though they're changed so much? Have you looked at their quarterback and the way he's progressed for that game also?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: He's a vet. He has a bunch of games under his belt. Like you just said, it's a different team, different -- we're going to take our scheme this week and figure out how we're going to play them on Saturday.
Q. You've been through a lot of road games. Is there anything that you can impart on some of the younger guys with regards to that?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: It's just another game, man. You can't overthink it. You can't make the moment too big. It's an away game, so obviously it won't -- the crowd, the momentum, all that, it won't be in our favor, but we've got to make it in our favor.
Q. What's the key to communicating? We were asking O'Cyrus about that, but is defensive backs and just getting lined up and things like that?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: Just got to be on the same page, communicate and co-sign. You've got to make sure the guy sees you and hears you and make sure you both say to each other, you have to look at each other and make sure you all are both on the same page.
Q. You played in big road games before. How satisfying is it when you make plays and you shut the other crowd up?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: It's great. It's just good to make a big play for the team. This is going to be a long season, so just try to do as much as I can to help us win.
Q. Do you kind of live for those moments on the road to shut the other team up, shut that crowd up?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: For sure. It's great to make big plays, especially on the road, especially when, like you said, the crowd is not for you, they're going for the team. So it's good to shift the momentum and give us opportunity to win.
Q. You guys struggled against the run a little bit in the first half against USF. What do you attribute that to? Is that just USF having a great game plan? What are the things you guys felt you didn't do to the best of your ability? What was it?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: They did have a good game plan. They came to play. It was a close game. Closer than we wanted it to be, but they came to play.
Q. Take-aways this season, I think you guys are tied for second in the league in interceptions. How much do you think that work is paying off, and how do you guys continue that?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: Turnover margin, that changes the game most of the time. We try to stay ahead on that, especially on Saturdays, team that has the most turnovers is most likely going to win the game. That's our mentality. Still going to take the ball away, get the ball back to the offense, and give them the opportunity to score.
Q. We saw Jaydon warming up a bit before the game. No, he hasn't been cleared to play quite yet, but what have you seen in his progress throughout the season? It's obviously been a long road for him?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: He's doing good. I'm happy to see him back out there. He's had struggles these last couple years, but I'm glad to see he's back on the field, moving around, feeling good. Be good to have him back out there.
Q. Is he an important voice to have in the defensive back room, just because he's had the highs of starting, had the lows of numerous injuries? How vital is he to you guys in there?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: Very. Like I said, we've got a lot of vets in the back end. So it's good, good to have more experience back there, guys that have been through it and know what to do and then helping the young guys. Just it's good to have experience like that in the room.
Q. Going back to Neyland in 2020, obviously that was a weird year. What was your experience playing in that stadium? It's going to be soldout this year.
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: I remember it was cold. It was cold. It wasn't too bad. COVID, there wasn't many fans in there, so it was a pretty quiet game. It was pretty good experience.
Q. Where does this rank up there for rivalries with fans? Where does this rank for you, like SC, Georgia, Tennessee?
TRE'VEZ JOHNSON: I don't really look into it as a rivalry. For me, it's another big game, a game we have to win, just like the next week after that, a game we have to win. I don't think I want to make the moment too much bigger than what it is. At the end of the day, we've got to go out and put the ball up.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports