A.J. Johnson needed only two words.

When asked to recall last year’s emotions of missing a bowl game for a third straight year, Tennessee’s senior linebacker kept it brief. 

“It sucked,” Johnson said at Monday’s press luncheon.

“That’s all you can really say. I haven’t been to one since I’ve been here, but I’m leaving my senior year to go to a bowl game.”

After the Vols’ recent overtime upset of South Carolina, that task seems a bit more manageable. Beginning this Saturday versus Kentucky, UT has three games remaining and requires just two victories to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2010.

However, the Vols’ current scenario mirrors that of 2013, where UT entered the final quarter of the regular season with four victories and needed a pair of wins to make any postseason chatter a reality. 

The unfavorable conclusion, though, is well-remembered. The Vols dropped back-to-back contests to then-No. 7 Auburn and Vanderbilt — the latter knocked UT out of bowl contention — before rounding out the season with a road victory at Kentucky. 

A peak at this November’s remaining slate appears much less treacherous. Currently there’s no ranked teams. No national title contender. No up-and-coming in-state foe destined for a second straight nine-win season. 

“Our players know what they have at stake,” head coach Butch Jones said. “The thing you don’t want to do is create stress on them. They understand what they’re playing for. They put themselves in position. Now, the more you win, the more is at stake. So what do you do? Does that drive you more? Are you satisfied with it? 

“Last year, I believe we got satisfied at times. There was nothing to be satisfied for. Where now we put ourselves in position for a postseason opportunity. Go take advantage of it.”

So far, so good.

With the 45-42 victory over the Gamecocks — a win that Jones “hopes everyone truly understands the magnitude of” — UT has promisingly positioned itself to send Johnson and 15 other seniors out with the long-awaited postseason appearance. 

And despite still being well aware of last season’s failures, UT’s defensive anchor is overly confident that his final collegiate season will end like the other three haven’t.

In jubilation, not disappointment.

“Getting to a bowl game is my last thought because I know we are going to get there,” Johnson said. “We are going to do what it takes, and we’re going to make whatever happen to get to a bowl game this year. 

“It’s going to be a great feeling when we get there.”

‘Fire up that loud, another round of shots’: After the Vols adopted his hit single “Turn Down for What” as a third-down rally cry, rapper Lil Jon decided to return the favor with a weekend visit to Knoxville.

Following a concert Saturday night at The International, the hip-hop icon made an appearance at UT’s Sunday practice, toured the Vols’ football facilities and even spoke to the team before they took to Haslam Field. 

“It was exciting to be able to meet him in person and stuff,” Johnson said. “That grill in his mouth shining, it was really shining like that in person. That was nice to see.

“… He said our coach is a ‘cool, cool cat.’ He liked coach Jones a lot.”

For Johnson, who’s hometown of Gainesville, Ga., sits just an hour north of Lil Jon’s Atlanta headquarters, the affection towards the 43-year-old rapper extends well beyond his collegiate years.

Whether it’s through his chaotic, upbeat musical product or his iconic, long-flowing dreads, UT’s senior linebacker has long identified with the “King of Crunk” in a multitude of ways. 

“I’ve been listening to Lil Jon since I was in like middle school, and he’s probably one of the reasons I wanted dreads when I was younger,” Johnson said. “I’ve always told my teammates that there’s like four guys that I looked up to who had dreads when I was younger, and he’s one of them.”

Saulsberry a no-go: While Jones indicated that many of UT’s banged-up offensive players are expected to play Saturday, the second-year head coach didn’t provide as promising of an injury update on the Vols’ defensive line.  

“Trevarris Saulsberry will still be out this week,” Jones said of the redshirt junior defensive tackle, who hobbled off with a knee injury against Alabama and didn’t play at South Carolina. “He’s the only one (out Saturday) as of today right now.”