All is well that ends well. So says William Shakespeare in my treasury of wise words.

We now know there are exceptions. Tennessee again coughed and sputtered for too much of a half, got its act together, fought off determined underdog Kentucky and won, 28-18.

The Neyland Stadium sellout crowd seemed stunned or totally confused at times. The home team dropped passes and went 0-for-3 on field-goal tries. It was flagged for 10 violations. History was the only sure thing. The Volunteers almost always beat the Wildcats (37 of the past 40 games).

Best I could tell, the ambiance of dark mode didn’t help much. The Vols didn’t look like a national championship contender. Style points and other decorations are important in November, relevant in the race for a place in the playoffs.

What’s more, it is high time a team with potential puts the pieces together. This was another game of missed opportunities. Yo, coaches, where are you?

The 7-1 record is good, good enough for sixth place in the latest coaches’ poll. It is better to be in than out of the five-way tie atop the Southeastern Conference. Dylan Sampson was some degree of great. He gained 142 yards and ran for two more touchdowns, his 18th and 19th of the season. That last number broke the school record for rushing TDs set by Hall of Fame tailback Gene McEver in 1929.

Nico Iamaleava was improved – considerably – 28 of 38 for 292 yards and one score. He deserved better stats. His passes could have produced two or maybe three more touchdowns.

“I thought he played with great confidence, great poise,” said Josh Heupel.

The offensive line appeared a bit more focused but did not get high grades. The defense gave up more explosive plays than usual. There were gaps where linebackers needed to be and some DBs got beat.

Jackson Ross lost the punting competition and it wasn’t close.

Defense still provided the winning edge. Biggest play was another Will Brooks interception and 67-yard return. That set up an improvised touchdown, Nico to tight end Miles Kitselman. Heupel said that was a big-time play.

The coach called attention to Nico’s “competitive makeup and ability to make plays and be a good decision-maker. He had a great night.”

Nico was the only Vol with a 90 grade according to Pro Football Focus.

Kitselman had six receptions for 97 yards. Bru McCoy had five catches. Freshman Peyton Lewis, No. 4 running back, got his first touchdown as a Vol. DeSean Bishop played just three snaps and suffered an ankle injury on a blocking assignment.

The teams exchanged turnovers in the first quarter. Andre Turrentine made a diving interception. An impolite Wildcat punched the ball from Sampson’s grip. He was offended. It was his second fumble of the season.

Heupel “rested” him for two possessions.

Tennessee trailed 10-7 at intermission. It cashed in two takeaways and won the third quarter, 14-0. Joshua Josephs sacked Blake Vandagriff and separated the UK quarterback from the football. Jeremiah Telander recovered at the UK 28. Soon Tennessee took the lead.

James Pearce knocked Vandagriff out of the game with the next sack. Brooks picked off reserve QB Gavin Wimsatt’s first pass. Tennessee delivered what could have been the game knockout a few minutes later.

The injured and error-prone Wildcats refused to go away. They hit back with a 75-yard touchdown drive, added a two-point conversion and reduced the deficit to 21-18. That was much too close for comfort.

The Vols answered with an impressive 90-yard drive, five Nico completions and the winning push – and push it was. Big linemen got together and shoved Sampson six yards into the end zone. Nico was actually in the rugby scrum, pushing people who were pushing other people.

“I ain’t going to lie, I’m surprised they didn’t blow the whistle,” Sampson said.

Dylan said the experience meant a lot to him.

“I’m going to cherish that play forever, because I think my teammates wanted me to get that touchdown as much or probably even more than I did … that just shows the brotherhood we’ve got and how much we want each other to succeed.”

The Vols also wanted to win the game.

Nico sounds like the eternal optimist regarding offensive disappointments.

“Man, still too many missed opportunities out there. We got to put it all together in one of these games. And I believe it’ll be the next game. So, we got to clean up a lot of stuff, a lot of penalties in the first half. And, yeah man, just missed opportunities down the field that we got to connect on. And, yeah, it’s coming, man. I keep telling my guys we got to keep going and it’ll pop eventually.”

Kentucky coach Mark Stoops spoke kindly of the victors.

“Tennessee, I think has a really complete team, and a great opportunity to make some noise down the stretch.”

Next test: Mississippi State is coming to town on a high (7 p.m. kickoff, ESPN). After two months of losing, the Bulldogs scored 45 and walloped UMass. Peak of 0-5 SEC competition so far was a 10-point loss at Georgia.

Marvin West welcomes comments or questions from readers. His address is marvinwest75@gmail.com