Tag: Tennessee

UT vs. Big Ten in bowl games

UT vs. Big Ten in bowl games.

KNOXVILLE — As Tennessee’s football team prepares for its first bowl game in three years, the Volunteers will get ready to face Indiana from the Big 10 in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Fla.

Tennessee has played a Big 10 team in a bowl game 15 times and the Volunteers have an 11-4 record.

Tennessee has two losses to Penn State, one two Iowa and one to Purdue. The Vols have a bowl loss to Nebraska when the Cornhuskers were in the Big 12. UT is 0-3 against Penn State since 1991. The Nittany Lions are 2-0 against the Vols as a member of the BIg 10.

Penn State also beat Tennessee, 42-17, in the Fiesta Bowl following the 1991 season when the Nittany Lions were Division I Independent.

The Volunteers beat Nebraska, 38-24, in their last postseason appearance in the Music City Bowl following the 2016 season when Tennessee finished 9-4.

All-time scores: Tennessee vs. the Big Ten in bowl games

Dec. 31, 1979: Bluebonnet Bowl (Houston, Texas) Purdue 27, Tennessee 22.

Dec. 13, 1981: Garden State Bowl (East Rutherford, New Jersey) Tennessee 28, Wisconsin 21.

Dec. 31, 1982: Peach Bowl (Atlanta, Georgia) Iowa 28, Tennessee 22.

Dec. 29, 1986: Liberty Bowl (Memphis) Tennessee 21, Minnesota 14.

Jan. 2, 1988: Peach Bowl (Atlanta, Georgia) Tennessee 27, Indiana 22.

Jan. 1, 1994: Florida Citrus Bowl (Orlando, Florida) Penn State 31, Tennessee 13.

Jan. 1, 1996: Florida Citrus Bowl (Orlando, Florida) Tennessee 20, Ohio State 14.

Jan. 1, 1997: Florida Citrus Bowl (Orlando, Florida) Tennessee 48, Northwestern 28.

Jan. 1, 2002: Florida Citrus Bowl (Orlando, Florida) Tennessee 45, Michigan 17.

Jan. 1. 2007: Outback Bowl (Tampa, Florida) Penn State 20, Tennessee 10.

Jan. 1, 2008: Outback Bowl (Tampa, Florida) Tennessee 21, Wisconsin 17.

Jan, 2, 2015:  TaxSlayer Bowl (Jacksonville, Florida) Tennessee 45, Iowa 28.

Jan. 1, 2016: Outback Bowl (Tampa, Florida) Tennessee 45, Northwestern 6.

Dec. 30, 2016: Music City Bowl (Nashville) Tennessee 38, Nebraska 24.

 

 

 

2019 Indiana Hoosiers’ offense by the numbers

2020 Gator Bowl.

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KNOXVILLE — Tennessee (7-5, 5-3 SEC) will play Indiana (8-4, 5-4 Big Ten) in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl to conclude the 2019 season.

The contest will be played Jan. 2 and kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. ET.

Below is a look at Indiana’s offense by the numbers during the 2019 season.

  • Total offense: 443.6 (31st nationally)
  • Passing yards per game: 308.7 (13th nationally)
  • Rushing yards per game: 134.9 (100th nationally)
  • 3rd conversions: .482 (11th nationally; 79 conversions/164 attempts)
  • 4th down conversions: .438 (97th nationally; 7 conversions/16 attempts)
  • Red zone offense: .847 (57th nationally; 50 scores/59 attempts — 23 rushing TDs, 15 passing TDs, 12 field goals)
  • Interceptions thrown: 8 (40th nationally; 439 passing attempts)
  • First downs: 287 (24th nationally; 162 passing, 99 rushing, 26 penalty)
  • Sacks allowed: 23 (58th nationally)
  • Time of possession: 34 (5th nationally)
  • Turnovers lost: 14 (29th nationally; 8 INTs, 6 fumbles lost)

2019 Indiana schedule

vs. Ball State (W, 34-24)
vs. Eastern Illinois (W, 52-0)
vs. Ohio St. (L, 51-10)
vs. UConn (W, 38-3)
at Michigan State (L, 40-31)
vs. Rutgers (W, 35-0)
at Maryland (W, 34-28)
at Nebraska (W, 38-31)
vs. Northwestern (W, 34-3)
at Penn St. (L, 34-27)
vs. Michigan (L, 39-14)
at Purdue (W, 44-41 2OT)

Omari Thomas commits to Tennessee

2020 Tennessee football recruiting.

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MEMPHIS — 2020 defensive lineman Omari Thomas has committed to the Vols.

The 6-foot-5, 300-pound prospect is from Briarcrest Christian in Memphis, Tenn.

Tennessee offered Thomas on Jan. 16, 2018, following Jeremy Pruitt being hired at UT. The in-state defensive lineman most recently visited Tennessee on Oct. 26 when the Vols defeated South Carolina, 41-21. Thomas was also in attendance for the Vols’ game against Georgia on Oct. 5.

2020 recruiting class signing dates

The 2019 Early Signing Period will take place Dec. 18-20 and National Signing Day will be held on Feb. 5.

The Vols’ 2020 commitment tracker can be followed below.

University of Tennessee’s 2020 football recruiting class tracker

Jeremy Pruitt discusses how far Tennessee has come in two years

2019 Tennessee football: Week 14

KNOXVILLE – Tennessee ended the 2019 regular season with five consecutive wins.

The Vols have also won six out of its last seven games – a turnaround following a 1-4 start to the season.

With two games remaining, Tennessee had the same record (5-5) as the Vols did last year in Jeremy Pruitt’s first season as head coach.

UT needed one win over Missouri or Vanderbilt to become bowl eligible last season in its final two contests.

The Vols lost both matchups last season, but Tennessee reversed course with the same scenario in 2019 and won both contests over Missouri and Vanderbilt to finish 7-5.

“Unless you were here the first day that I walked in this building, I don’t think you understand how far we actually have come,” Pruitt said of Tennessee’s turnaround following its victory over Vanderbilt in Week 14. “Coach (Phillip) Fulmer was here. It’s a long ways – I can assure you of that, and our guys, I’m excited for them, the way they feel, the confidence that they have. We’re playing with so much more confidence, believing in ourselves, believing in each other.

“You think about, over the last five wins, just the different points in the game where somebody stepped up, a unit stepped up and found a way. That’s what good football teams do. You’ve got to find a way, even when you’re maybe not playing at your best. I look at our assistant coaches, what they’ve done, keeping these guys together, keeping them believing and them finding a way, finding a way to get it done – and it’s been different guys.”

Vols men’s basketball falter vs FSU

NICEVILLE – The Tennessee Volunteers men’s basketball team’s season-opening winning streak has finally come to an end, losing a tough game in the final minutes on the road to the Florida State Seminoles, 60-57, in the Emerald Coast Classic. The Vols …

NICEVILLE — The Tennessee Volunteers men’s basketball team’s season-opening winning streak has finally come to an end, losing a tough game in the final minutes on the road to the Florida State Seminoles, 60-57, in the Emerald Coast Classic.

The Vols were led by Lamonte Turner, who scored 20 points, but only shot 4-14 from the field and did most of his damage at the charity stripe, going 11-14; he also gave away 8 turnovers. Yves Pons brought the double-double trouble scoring 13 points, grabbing 10 boards and swatting three shots, representing the Vols’ best performance on the evening. Jordan Bowden was the only other UT player to reach double digit points, adding 11 of his own to go along with five rebounds.

Despite the close finish, Tennessee never led in this game. It was a furious comeback in the last two minutes that produced the final margin of defeat, with the Vols falling short in the end. Their largest deficit of 13 came at 10:42 in the second half, and the Volunteers just were not able to dig themselves out of that hole. FSU made three of four free throw attempts in the final seconds to seal the loss despite a last-second trey by Turner.

Overall, the Vols only shot 33 percent from the field and a putrid 23 percent from behind the arc. Their 89 percent mark from the free throw line on 29 attempts is very encouraging, as was their team total of seven blocks, but it is hard to win games against quality opponents when you cough up the ball 21 times.

The match was the first between the two teams in three decades, with the all-time record in the series now standing at 5-4 in favor of Tennessee. The loss ended a five-game winning streak to open the year for the Vols, though there remain plenty more games to be played.

The Volunteers next face either Purdue or VCU on Saturday at 4 or 7 p.m. ET, depending on game results, and will be broadcasted on the CBS Sports Network.

Women’s Basketball Profile: Rennia Davis

Women’s Basketball Profile: Rennia Davis

KNOXVILLE — The Lady Vols basketball team has gotten off to a scorching start this season, thanks in large part to the play of Rennia Davis.

Hailing from Jacksonville, Fla., Davis been a leader for this Tennessee squad reminiscent of Rocky Top legend Candace Parker. The 6-foot-2 junior swingwoman has been a tugboat for the team in her two-plus seasons, logging over 30 minutes per game during that stretch, and providing both a scoring punch and a presence on the glass.

Davis played high school ball at Jacksonville’s Ribault High School starting in 2014, where she earned numerous accolades. She was named to the FABC 4A All-State First Team all four years she played, and led her squad to state titles in both her junior and senior seasons; she participated on three total championship teams at Ribault. She averaged 20.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game her junior year, and for her senior season, Davis elevated her scoring game to post 26.3 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game, and was named a McDonald’s All-American and MaxPreps First-Team All-American, among many other distinctions. It should also be noted that she was a superlative student, graduating 14th in her class and earning a dual-enrollment AA degree, while also being named to the National Honor Society.

Before beginning her collegiate career, Davis played in the 2016 USA Women’s U17 World Championship Team Trials with the AAU club Essence. She averaged 12.3 points over seven games, scoring double digits in five of those matches and sporting a high mark of 20 points, while also averaging 1.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game over the same stretch.

Davis came out of the gates on fire for the Lady Volunteers, averaging 12.0 points and 7.6 rebounds in her debut season, while starting 32 of 33 games on the year. She finished sixth all-time in rebounds per game by a Lady Vol freshman with 7.6, ranking No. 11 in rebounding in the SEC and second among conference freshmen. She shot .483 from the field, .329 on three-pointers — her 25 treys were the fourth-most on the team. She also notched nine double-doubles to tie Tamika Catchings for fifth-most double-doubles ever recorded by a Lady Vol freshman.

Her sophomore year was an impressive step forward that earned her a 2019 All-SEC Second Team selection as well as a WBCA All-America Honorable Mention selection. She led the Lady Vols in scoring (14.9), rebounding (7.7) and free throw percentage (.856) in just her second season in Knoxville. Her free throw mark was an SEC-best, while her rebounding and scoring numbers placed her eighth and twelfth in the conference, respectively. She continued her tear as a double-double machine, matching her freshman season output of nine — the seventh-most double-doubles ever by a UT sophomore and the sixth-most by an active player in the SEC. She also scored in double figures a team-leading 26 times, with 16 games of 15-plus points and six of 20 or more.

Expectations have been high for Davis entering her junior year after being named to numerous watch-lists, including the Wooden Award Preseason Top 30, the Citizen Naismith Trophy Preseason Watch List, and the John R. Wooden Award Preseason Top 30. So far, she has lived up to the hype, recording double-doubles in four of her first six games, and already receiving one SEC Player of the Week award after she exploded for a career-high 33 points against a then No. 16-ranked Notre Dame squad. She’s averaging 15.7 points and 8.5 rebounds per game so far, making 18 of 22 free throws for a healthy 82 percent mark.

The women’s team has gotten off to a tremendous start this season winning their first six games out of the gate, and Rennia Davis is one of the biggest factors in their success. The talent and potential has always been there, and fans are now witnessing one of Tennessee’s best players blossom right before their eyes. With Rennia Davis holding the reins, the possibilities for the Lady Vols are endless.

Houston Nutt discusses Vols’ season turnaround

2019 Tennessee football: Week 14

KNOXVILLE — Tennessee (6-5, 4-3 SEC) became bowl eligible with a 24-20 victory at Missouri last week.

The Vols becoming bowl eligible is a remarkable feat following a 1-4 start to the season. The turnaround speaks volumes in how second-year Tennessee head coach Jeremy Pruitt has been able to change the culture and how players are continuing to buy into his UT program.

Following the Vols’ win at Missouri, former Arkansas and Ole Miss head coach Houston Nutt discussed Tennessee’s turnaround on Fox Sports Knoxville’s radio show ‘Tennessee Two-A-Days’.

The show with Nutt can be listened to below.

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Men’s Basketball Profile: Jordan Bowden

Men’s Basketball Profile: Jordan Bowden

KNOXVILLE — Every team needs a player who can go out and get things done, and for the Tennessee Volunteers men’s basketball team, Jordan Bowden is that person.

Bowden, a senior from Knoxville, Tenn., has had a significant role on every team he has played with on Rocky Top. The 6-foot-5 shooting guard has been one of the team’s best all-around players over the years, from placing among the top scorers to his ability to crash the boards and grab steals.

The Tennessee native graduated from Carter High School in Strawberry Plains, where he earned All-State and District 3-AA MVP recognition, and was also recognized as the Knoxville News Sentinel’s 2015 PrepXtra Boys Basketball Player of the Year for his senior year; he was the first player from Carter ever to receive the latter distinction. That same season, Bowden shot 55 percent from the field and averaged 26.6 points, 8.9 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game.

His next stop was 22 Feet Academy of Shannon Forest Christian School in Greenville, S.C., as a member of the prep school’s National Team. He averaged 17 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game, and drew interest from several high major programs after a 30-point outburst at the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas in December of 2015.

Bowden began his Volunteers career in UT’s opener against the  Chattanooga Mocs in 2016, notching just one rebound off the bench. The remainder of his freshman year was far more remarkable, averaging 7.9 points and 2.9 rebounds per game, while also swiping a team-high 27 steals. Additionally, he was a significant contributor to a freshman class that was the highest-scoring in program history, while also ranking third on the team in minutes played, with a 22.8 per game average.

Things continued to progress for Bowden in his sophomore season, as he placed fourth on the team in points per game with 9.1, while also leading all Vols perimeter players in rebounds with 3.6 per game. He notched double figure points in 15 games and made multiple three-pointers in 14 contests, and Tennessee went 7-0 when he scored at least 15 points. He also led the team in steals with 39 and ranked second in 3-point shooting percentage with a .395 clip.

Bowden continued his upward trajectory into his junior season, when he was UT’s fifth-leading scorer with 10.6 points per game and ranked fourth on the team in minutes played — one of four Vols to log more than 1,000 minutes. Tennessee went 18-3 when he scored at least 10 points that year, and he committed only 35 turnovers in 1,002 total minutes played. Bowden also ranked second on the team in three-point shots made with 51, and knocked down at least three 3-pointers in seven games.

In his senior season so far, Bowden has taken things to the next level. He recorded his first career double-double against the Chattanooga Mocs and dropped a career-high 26 points on Murray State, earning SEC Player of the Week honors thanks in part to the latter performance. He also joined Tennessee’s 1,000-Point Club with a 16 point effort against Alabama State.

Bowden has been a cornerstone of the Volunteers’ surge from the start of the season, and figures to be a major contributor to the team’s success this year. While has has been a solid player in years past, it appears that he is elevating his game for his senior campaign and intends to leave Rocky Top on a high note. He is one of many talented players this Tennessee team has on its roster, and if he can continue contribute at a high level, this Vols team could very well be playing for the trophy come April 2020.

UT News: November 29, 2019

An exciting weekend of Volunteers sports is now upon us, with the men’s basketball team traveling to Florida to take on the Florida State Seminoles, while the football team gets geared up for their final game of the regular season on Saturday. …

An exciting weekend of Volunteers sports is now upon us, with the men’s basketball team traveling to Florida to take on the Florida State Seminoles, while the football team gets geared up for their final game of the regular season on Saturday. Meanwhile, a handful of VFL players are on the Twitter NFL Pro Bowl ballot, just waiting for your vote.

Vols basketball face FSU

The Tennessee men’s basketball team takes on the Florida State Seminoles tonight in the 2019 Emerald Coast Classic held in Niceville, Fla. The Vols will face FSU in their semifinal game inside The Arena at Northwest Florida State College.

Tennessee is coming off a strong defensive effort against in a win against the Chattanooga Mocs, and look to keep their season-opening win streak alive. The match will be the ninth time the two teams have faced each other on the parquet, with their most recent meeting coming way back in 1989. The Vols lead the all-time series, 5-3.

A victory on Friday night would improve the Volunteers to 6-0, their best start since 2010-2011, when they came out of the gates with seven-straight wins.

Tip-off is at 7 p.m. ET and will be broadcasted on the CBS Sports Network and can be heard on local Vol Network affiliates.

NEXT: Tennessee wraps up regular season vs. Vandy

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UT News: November 28, 2019

UT News: November 28, 2019

Welcome to a Thanksgiving edition of UT News, where the turkey is moist, the wonderful scents of the holiday permeate the room, and nobody fights at the table. There is not much on tap today to cover, though the Lady Vols volleyball team triumphed over Auburn for Senior Night and wet-head Erika Brown was named SEC Swimmer of the Week. So without further ado, on to the news.

Lady Vols grab Senior Night victory over Auburn

The Lady Vols volleyball squad defeated Auburn last night in four sets, in their final match of the season at Thompson-Boling Arena.

The cherry on top of the victory was that the win came on Senior Night, making it a suiting finale for the women who have played in their last home game in Knoxville. The triumph also gave the Volunteers their fourth victory in their last five matches. Tessa Grubbs’ 14 kills now places her at No. 8 all-time at Tennessee, with 1,405 kills in her four-year career.

Coach Eve Rackham had the following to say about the Senior Night win.

“You can’t hope for anything else other than to be able to play great at home and send your seniors out the right way. We gave them all a chance to start and they played so well. It’s kind of storybook ending, but that’s what you want to be able to do. And I just feel fortunate we were able to do that for them and to be able to repay as much as we can.”

The Lady Vols wrap up the season in Starkville, Miss. against the Mississippi State Bulldogs. UT has won four of their previous matches, including a sweep earlier this season. First serve is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET and will air on SEC Network+.

NEXT: Erika Brown named SEC Swimmer of the Week

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