After falling in the season opener for just the second time in Phillip Fulmer's tenure, the Tennessee Vols hope to bounce back against Southern Mississippi, the preseason favorite in Conference USA.   

"We'll have to work like heck to win this game," Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer said. "The points of emphasis in practice this week are easy to discern—defense and kick coverage. Both wasted an excellent performance by the offense at Cal."

There will be a pair of changes to the starting defense for the Vols, as freshman Eric Berry will replace Jarod Parish at strong safety and Dan Williams will replace J.T. Mapu at defensive tackle. 

The Vols gave up 230 rushing yards to the Bears and it won't get any easier against Southern Miss, who ran for 310 yards on its way to a 35–13 season-opening win over Tennessee-Martin.

Sophomore Damion Fletcher led the way on the ground for the Golden Eagles with 156 yards and a touchdown in last week's win. Fletcher's big season opener came on the heels of a freshman campaign in which he accounted for over 1500 total yards and scored 11 touchdowns.

"Offensively, we've studied them all summer and been very impressed with their tailback," said Fulmer. "Somebody asked me who he reminds me of. He's not quite as big, but he is the same kind of runner as Arian Foster.

"He is able to break tackles and make people miss and find creases and bounce plays. He's a real challenge for our defense, especially coming off an effort where we didn't tackle very well."

The Vols will also have to deal with dual-threat quarterback Jeremy Young, who racked up 170 total yards and two touchdowns in the win over UT-Martin, and tight end Shawn Nelson who has eight receiving touchdowns in his collegiate career.

"The quarterback is impressive. He's a good player, a good athlete," Fulmer said. "The tight end could start in the Southeastern Conference."

The defense will also present a challenge for the Vols according to Fulmer. 

"They are a very challenging defensive football team. Their front, linebackers and secondary have all played together for a long time as they have 10 returning starters on their defense. They make you work at it, which is kind of the norm this day and age."

One of the few bright spots in the season opener for the Vols was its offense which racked up 382 yards against Cal.

"We have enough talent. We have enough speed. We're veteran enough," quarterback Erik Ainge said. "It doesn't get any more important than executing."

The offense should be helped by the return of tailback LaMarcus Coker from a one game suspension. Coker led the team in rushing as a freshman last season, running for 696 yards despite missing two games due to injury.

"Having LaMarcus Coker back will certainly be a big help for us," said coach Fulmer.

The Vols went 5–2 at Neyland Stadium last season and have won 12 straight home openers since a 31–0 loss to Florida in 1994. 

Tennessee and Southern Miss have met four prior times, and the Vols have come out on top in each contest. The last matchup between the two teams came in 2000, a game Tennessee won 19–16.