KNOXVILLE (WVLT) -- It wasn't pretty, but Vol fans will take it.

Tennessee edged Northern Illinois, 13-9, Saturday at Neyland Stadium, winning its second game of the season despite a lackluster offensive performance.

Nick Stephens replaced Jonathan Crompton at quarterback, but the offensive results were awfully similar for the Vols; for the most part, at least. Stephens did complete a picturesque 52-yard bomb to Denarius Moore for the game's only touchdown, which made the score 13-3 midway through the third quarter.

Stephens finished the game 11-of-18 for 156 yards and a touchdown, with no interceptions and one fumble. Arian Foster led the Vols' rushing attack with 75 yards on 18 carries.

The defense carried the Vols once more, refusing to allow a touchdown for the second straight game. Northern Illinois managed 198 yards total offense, compared to Tennessee's 225.

Things get a lot harder for Tennessee (2-3, 0-2 SEC) next week, as Phillip Fulmer and company visit Georgia. Tune in to Sports Overtime at 11pm for the I'm-All-Vol Postgame Report, featuring complete highlights and postgame comments from Phillip Fulmer and the players.

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Tennessee and Northern Illinois are in a tight one at Neyland at the end of the third quarter, with the Vols holding a 13-9 lead.

Nick Stephens hurled a graceful deep ball to Denarius Moore for the only touchdown of the game, a 52-yarder that put the Vols ahead, 13-3. But Northern Illinois answered with two field goals, one of which came after a Nick Stephens fumble deep inside Tennessee territory.

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Nick Stephens dropped a beautiful deep pass into the arms of Denarius Moore for a 52-yard touchdown midway through the third quarter to give Tennessee a 13-3 lead over Northern Illinois.

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Daniel Lincoln made a 34-yard field goal to give Tennessee a 6-3 lead with 12:40 left in the third quarter. The key play on the drive was a 43-yard completion from Nick Stephens to Gerald Jones, which took the ball down to the Huskies' 21-yard-line.

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Tennessee and Northern Illinois are in the halftime locker room tied at 3 in a sloppy first half chalk-full of UT penalties and miscues.

Nick Stephens finished the half 8-of-12 for 50 yards, and two of the incompletions were drops. The Vols moved the ball decently well, but were only able to score after Eric Berry returned a interception 48 yards to the Huskies' 16-yard-line, setting up an eventual 36-yard Daniel Lincoln field goal.

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A 48-yard interception return by Eric Berry set up a 36-yard Daniel Lincoln field goal to tie the game, 3-3, with 6:50 left in the first half in Knoxville.

Nick Stephens completed a first-down pass to the 5-yard-line, but an ineligible receiver penalty nullified the gain, and a Husky sack forced the field goal try.

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Northern Illinois made a 25-yard field goal to take a 3-0 lead over Tennessee with just under three minutes left in the first quarter at Neyland Stadium.

The Huskies got a short field after Josh Briscoe fumbled the football at midfield and Northern recovered.

At the end of the first quarter, quarterback Nick Stephens is 6-of-8 for 45 yards. He's performing as effectively as Crompton ever did during his best drives in the first four games of the season.

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After Jonathan Crompton failed to effectively lead the Vols' offense in Tennessee's first four games, it's backup Nick Stephens' turn against Northern Illinois.

Kickoff is at 7pm. Click here for constant game updates, and also visit our blog, where you can submit your comments or questions.