Tennessee football can’t protect quarterback Nico Iamaleava, at least not well enough to run its preferred brand of offense.

That was evident in the Vols’ 19-14 loss to Arkansas.

After the game, Josh Heupel said he and his staff should’ve coached better. Once he reviewed the game film, he got down to the nitty gritty of the breakdowns in pass protection.

“We didn’t play clean,” Heupel said. “Some of that’s Nico. Some of that’s the guys around him.”

UT was confused by the Arkansas defensive scheme, which the Razorbacks changed specifically for that game. UT coaches didn’t adjust well enough once they recognized the change.

Iamaleava and his linemen were fooled by the Razorbacks’ alignment and movement.

And when players did recognize the direction of the pass rush, they struggled to block it. Tackles Lance Heard and John Campbell were especially vulnerable, but UT lost battles across the offensive line.

No. 9 Tennessee (4-1, 1-1 SEC) plays Florida (3-2, 1-1) on Saturday (7 p.m. ET, ESPN) at Neyland Stadium.

Priority No. 1 is getting the offense in gear. And the biggest part of that problem is pass protection because Iamaleava has been sacked seven times in the past two games.

Here are the issues the Vols must solve in pass protection.

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Vols have been bewildered by defensive scheme

UT opponents have changed their defensive scheme in each of the past two games, switching to a three-man front and dropping into deep pass coverage.

Both teams also disguised their pass rush well. They came on delayed blitzes in some instances. And they showed a blitz and then pulled back in other instances.

Iamaleava, as a redshirt freshman with six career starts, has been confused before the snap. And his offensive linemen have been fooled after the snap.

Heupel knows that a three-man front appears to be part of the recent blueprint to slow his offense. Florida uses multiple fronts, but defensive coordinator Austin Armstrong has utilized both a 3-3-5 and 3-4 scheme.

“Structurally, that’s what the last couple opponents have decided to play against us,” Heupel said. “(We are) certainly capable last week of attacking and performing better than we did in the run game and in the pass game (against a three-man front).

“Some of the things that we control, we did not handle very well. Communication was a big part of it.”

Offensive linemen have lost one-on-one battles

Even when UT has guessed right in anticipating the pass rush, offensive linemen still blocked poorly at times. The tackles have struggled the most.

Against Oklahoma, Campbell and Dayne Davis, who replaced the injured Heard, were beaten for strip sacks and pressures on Iamaleava. Campbell left that game with an injury.

Against Arkansas, Campbell and Heard returned from injuries. But they allowed defenders to reach Iamaleava quickly and easily.

“Some of (pass protection problems) is just one-on-one battles,” Heupel said. “Love those guys. Believe in those guys. Those two, like pretty much everybody offensively, can perform at a higher level as we go and have performed at a higher level than they did the other night.

“Some of that’s just ordinary things — fundamentals, technique, assignment-alignment and technique.”

Lance Heard, John Campbell aren't in great shape yet

Fatigue also could be a factor.

Campbell and Heard were limited by injuries in preseason practice, so they didn’t have as many reps in UT’s up-tempo offense as other linemen.

Campbell averaged only 31 snaps in UT’s first four games, but he played 55 snaps against Arkansas. Heard had not played since the NC State game on Sept. 7 due to injury before getting 68 snaps against Arkansas.

If UT benched either tackle, Davis would replace them. The former walk-on is a sixth-year senior who’s started eight games in his career.

But the Vols don’t want to give up on Heard, an LSU transfer and former five-star recruit. The sophomore has NFL potential, and he’s the only non-senior in the starting five on the line. So his best football is likely ahead.

There are blocking problems at other positions

There’s plenty of blame to go around, including running backs and tight ends who missed blocks.

According to Pro Football Focus, Heard and Campbell blocked on 76 pass plays. They allowed seven quarterback hurries.

Tight end Miles Kitselman, tight end Holden Staes and backup running back DeSean Bishop blocked on 20 pass plays. They combined to allow five quarterback hurries.

And those stats don’t even account for Iamaleava’s errors in calling out pass protections before the snap or offensive line coach Glen Elarbee’s mistakes in adjustments during the game.

UT must improve its pass protection quickly because Florida’s pass rush is in a groove.

The Gators got three sacks against Mississippi State and five sacks against UCF in back-to-back wins.

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Nico Iamaleava: Tennessee football has problem protecting quarterback