Tennessee (6-1, 2-1 SEC) defeated rival Alabama (5-2, 2-2 SEC), 24-17, on Saturday at Neyland Stadium.

Fourth-year head coach Josh Heupel won his second game against the Crimson Tide as Tennessee's head coach. He met with media after the Week 8 contest and recapped the Vols' win.

"Third Saturday in October," Heupel said. "That’s college football as good as it gets. Neyland effect, our fans were elite. Elite performance from them all night. I appreciate them hanging in with us on the offensive side of the ball when we were struggling. Defensively, just absolutely an elite performance, the line of scrimmage and controlling the quarterback. We did everything we had to do going into it. Did an unbelievable job on third down. Offensively, not good early but not far off. Everything has to tie together.

"We have to be able to run the football. We have to continue to improve. I love a lot of what I saw in the second half. Special teams had a solid performance at the end. There were some things early that we have to be better at. I thought it was another prize fight, and you have to be able to answer the bell. These guys answered the bell every single round. I’d go to battle with these guys any day. Just another great night on Rocky Top."

PHOTOS: Tennessee fans storm the field after beating Alabama

This article originally appeared on Vols Wire: Josh Heupel recaps second Third Saturday in October win