Tennessee's Von Pearson (9) pushes his way into the end zone past Kentucky defenders to score a touchdown during their game at Neyland Stadium on Nov. 15, 2014.KNOXVILLE - Von Pearson was in one of his favorite places on Saturday, as a chilly afternoon turned into an even colder evening at Neyland Stadium.
Tennessee's wide receiver had the football in his hands in the open field with just one defender between him and plenty of green grass.
A couple of cuts later, Pearson was in the end zone for the first of the two touchdowns he scored as the Volunteers routed Kentucky for their fifth win of the season.
The ankle injury the junior college transfer suffered two months ago -- and any ensuing frustration Pearson might have battled from having to wait to make the impact he wanted to have for Tennessee -- appears to be behind him.
"It's exciting just knowing that I'm getting better and knowing that my cuts are good," he said after Tennessee's 50-16 victory. "I'd cut on the field, and I'd be like, 'I ain't never done this cut in a while.' It's getting better, so it feels good.
UT's Kyler Kerbyson, standing, checks on Von Pearson after he was injured in the first half of the game against Arkansas State at Neyland Stadium."God works in mysterious ways. I know how I felt. I hurt myself, but I knew it was going to be a great comeback, so I didn't let it get to my head."
Flash back to early September, when Tennessee played Arkansas State in the second game of the season.
Pearson turned a short catch on a slant pattern from Justin Worley into a 56-yard gain and had 71 receiving yards on four catches when his left leg was rolled up on as he blocked downfield early in the second quarter.
The injury was a nagging high-ankle sprain, and it forced Pearson, who had a gaudy season (93 catches for 1,601 yards and 12 touchdowns) for Feather River College in California last season, to miss the Oklahoma and Georgia games.
Even when he returned against Florida after a four-week absence, he was not close to being fully healthy.
"Getting Von Pearson back to where he's 100 percent healthy really gives our offense a spark," Vols coach Butch Jones said. "I think the bye week really helped him to get back his health, and he's 100 percent. He adds a whole other element when he has the ball in his hands, and it's not just him having the ball his hands, but it's his personality.
"His personality is very contagious on the field, on the sideline and in the locker room, so it's great to have him back."
Two weeks after he first returned, Pearson caught five passes for 26 yards in Tennessee's loss at Ole Miss. He hauled in a 9-yard touchdown against Alabama on a similar out pattern to the one on which he scored a 16-yard touchdown on Saturday against the Wildcats. At South Carolina, Pearson caught a 42-yard pass in the first quarter.
"Von has been making plays," quarterback Josh Dobbs said. "We know he's good in space, so having a good ankle really helps him cut and juke, as we were able to see tonight. Whenever we're able to get Von in space, that's great.
"Not only Von, but the rest of the receivers, they all have stepped up and made a lot of big plays throughout the past couple of games, so we've just got to keep it going."
Despite the games he missed due to injury, Pearson is third among Tennessee's receivers in catches (25) and fourth in receiving yards (264), but he shares the team lead in touchdowns (four) with Marquez North.
Through 10 games, Tennessee has seven players, including tailback Jalen Hurd and tight end Ethan Wolf, with at least 18 receptions after only four players reached that mark in 2013.
"That's what we take pride in, just having depth at the receiver spot and having no dropoffs," said receiver Jason Croom, who caught a touchdown pass in a second straight game on Saturday. "We all come in, and we just come in and attack."
The shifty 6-foot-3, 183-pound Pearson is adding to that attacking arsenal with his ankle back to full strength.
"It's very close," he said. "I got my jukes back, my left-to-right movement. I feel good out there.
"As a team, we felt pretty good. We had a couple of weeks (with) a bye week. We knew that Kentucky was on their (eighth) game in a row and that they were not fresh like we were. We all had a good feeling about this."
Tennessee tidbits
The Vols opened as a three-point favorite against Missouri, who is chasing the SEC East Division title after winning at Texas A&M on Saturday night. ... On his coach's show on Sunday, Jones said starting center Mack Crowder suffered a high-ankle sprain on Saturday, and the Vols are also evaluating his left knee.... Redshirt freshman guard and former Bradley Central High School standout Austin Sanders suffered a high-ankle sprain, Jones said, in the fourth quarter.
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.