Tennessee Vols proved something extremely important in blowout win against Kent State

The Tennessee Vols didn't have any issues on Saturday night against Kent State, cruising to a 71-0 victory in Knoxville.

Tennessee's 71 points are the most by a Vols team in the AP Poll era (1936). The Vols also broke the single game record for most yards in a game (breaking a record that was set under Heupel in 2022).

Kent State isn't a very good team. It's not a surprise that Tennessee won in blowout fashion. But dismissing what the Vols did on Saturday night just because of the opponent wouldn't be wise.

Tennessee came out in attack mode on Saturday night, on both sides of the ball. They weren't going through the motions, or playing down to their opponent. Everyone in a Vols uniform came out on Saturday night to play their brand of football at the highest level. And that's exactly what they did. The Vols' first team offense scored with ease on Saturday night. And they scored fast. The running backs were fast and elusive while combining for six touchdowns. Nico Iamaleava showed off his splash play ability with a deep touchdown throw to Chris Brazzell. The offense was hitting on all cylinders.

There's room for Tennessee to improve. No doubt about that. But we saw the Vols competing at the highest level on Saturday night. And that's the culture of this team. Don't play down to anyone. Don't let off the gas at any point. Compete harder than the other team on every rep and trust that good things will happen.

That's a championship mindset. Whether or not it works out, who knows. This Tennessee team, so far, appears good enough to win it all. And they have a real chance because of their mindset. But that doesn't always mean that it'll work out. Tennessee has a handful of legitimate challenges ahead, starting next weekend with Oklahoma.

Related: Kent State's head coach reportedly made a baffling decision at halftime of Tennessee Vols game