Clayton Beathard, 22, was stabbed to death outside a Nashville bar on the morning of Dec. 21.
Clayton is the son of country songwriter Casey Beathard and the brother of singer/songwriter Tucker Beathard (pictured in main photo) and NFL quarterback C.J. Beathard.
Paul Trapeni III, 21, was also stabbed to death during the altercation outside of Dogwood Bar in Midtown.
“The fatal stabbings appear to have resulted from an argument over a woman that began inside Dogwood Bar and then turned physical when the parties went outside,” according to a press release from Nashville Police. “Multiple persons were involved in the outdoor fight during which the two men were both fatally stabbed in their sides.”
A third stabbing victim, 21, remains at Vanderbilt with injuries to his eye and arm. Police are searching for four persons of interest.
Clayton Beathard played football at Long Island University and Battle Ground Academy.
“It’s times like this I wish had Instagram and social media because the love and prayers have been so overwhelming. We cannot possibly thank you at the rate they come in texts and phone calls. Clay was an amazing, big and soft hearted human being with an undeniable love for the Lord. He had his family’s, friends’ and teammates’ backs even to a fault. I wish he would have been more inclined to take the high road but he hated ‘wrong.’
“That is what we will hold in our hearts because we know he is smiling now. He always worried about all of our welfare, never his own. I say that to say, to those who knew and loved him, please lean into the Lord’s strength, trust in the Lord and carry on. Carry him with you like a chip on your shoulder, like the one he carried. He loved people saying he could do something. That’s where he thrived mostly.”
photo of Tucker Beathard by Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com
NCD is closing out the year with our “Play It Forward” segment, which beckons our featured artists to recommend a singer or song that mainstream country fans may not be familiar with.
Today’s recommendation comes from Keith Urban.
“Tenille Townes, gosh, incredible,” says Keith. “I heard her a long time back, and she’s got a lot of new music that’s coming that’s incredible.”
Listen to Tenille’s recent single, “Somebody’s Daughter,” below.
Dustin Lynch helped raise more than $36,000 for his hometown of Tullahoma, Tenn., during his sixth annual Dustin Lynch & Friends Benefit Concert on Dec. 17. The annual show at Tullahoma High School, which featured performances by Dustin, Hunter Phelps, Jon Nite and Rodney Clawson, will benefit local charities Isaiah 117 House, the Coffee County Children’s Advocacy Center and Toys for Tots.
Dustin will follow-up his 2017 album, Current Mood, with the release of his fourth studio album, Tullahoma, on Jan. 17. The new project takes its name from Dustin’s Tennessee hometown, which is about 80 miles southeast of Nashville.
“It’s all about me and growing up in my hometown,” says Dustin. “Every song on this album points to something that happened to me or my close friends and family, and that’s really cool. I’m very proud of where I’m from, and proud of this record because it will hopefully make my hometown a little more famous than it already is.”
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 21 Tennessee men’s basketball returns home to Thompson-Boling Arena for a weekend bout with Jacksonville State. Saturday’s tipoff is slated for 1 p.m. ET on SEC Network+.
Saturday’s game is available online via WatchESPN and on any mobile device through the ESPN app. Fans can log on to WatchESPN at espn.com/watch. Michael Wottreng, Steve Hamer and Kasey Funderburg will have the call.
Fans can also listen live on their local Vol Network affiliate to hear Bob Kesling and Bert Bertlekamp describing the action.
Big Orange Santa will be making his appearance at Thompson-Boling Arena on Saturday. Fans are encouraged to arrive early to get their picture with the holiday’s most iconic man on The Summitt.
Last time out, the Vols dropped their second consecutive game, falling 78-66 at Cincinnati on Wednesday night. Junior John Fulkerson impressed in the loss, scoring 14 points on six-of-eight shooting from the field, while recording a career-high four steals. Freshman Davonte Gaines put in 17 solid minutes off the bench, finishing with four points and a season-high three steals. The lead performer for the Vols was senior Jordan Bowden who poured in 13 points, while dishing off a season-high six assists. Bowden is currently riding a streak of 16 consecutive made free throws dating to UT’s victory over Alabama State (11/20/19).
This will be the first meeting between the Vols and Gamecocks on the collegiate hardwood, with Tennessee holding a 59-2 overall record against current members of the Ohio Valley Conference. Tennessee has already played one OVC oppoenent this year, taking down Murray State, 82-63 on Nov. 12.
Tennessee will be looking to avoid its first three game losing streak since Feb. 22 through March 1 of the 2016-17 season when the Vols dropped consecutive contests to Vanderbilt, South Carolina and LSU. A win would also give head coach Rick Barnes his 700th career victory, making him the 22nd coach to reach 700 wins, while giving him the seventh most wins among active Division I head coaches.
Up next, the Vols will have a week off, before returning to action on Saturday, Dec. 28 for a home matchup with Wisconsin. Tipoff is set for 1:30 p.m. ET on CBS.
THE SERIES
• Tennessee has never previously faced Jacksonville State on the collegiate hardwood, but the Vols are 58-2 all-time against current members of the Ohio Valley Conference.
• Rick Barnes is 5-0 in his career against current members of the OVC.
A WIN WOULD…
• Be Rick Barnes‘ 700th career head coaching victory.
• Give Tennessee a 55-17 record as a ranked team (AP rankings) during the Barnes era.
• Prevent UT’s first three-game losing skid since Feb. 22 through March 1 of the 2016-17 season (Vanderbilt, South Carolina, LSU).
• Give the program a 212-132 record in the 2010s as the decade draws near to a close.
STORYLINES
• JSU is located in Jacksonville, Alabama—an entirely different city and state than the site of Tennessee’s upcoming football bowl game, which will be played in Jacksonville, Florida, on Jan. 2.
• In 111 seasons of varsity basketball, Tennessee has played only one opponent whose name starts with the letter J, and that is Johnson Bible College (four all-time meetings between 1913-21).
• There are currently four Division I schools that start with J: Jackson State, Jacksonville University, Jacksonville State and James Madison.
• After establishing themselves as a top-10 defensive team entering this week, the Vols had an uncharacteristically poor defensive showing at Cincinnati Wednesday. Tennessee allowed the Bearcats to shoot 56 percent as a team, and UC became the first UT opponent to score 70 points this season.
LAYUP LINES
• Tennessee is ranked No. 21 in both the AP and the coaches poll this week.
• Tennessee leads the SEC and ranks 13th nationally in scoring defense, allowing only 57.6 ppg.
• The Vols were a perfect 17-for-17 at the free-throw line Wednesday night at Cincinnati.
• Over its last two games, Tennessee is 7-for-41 (.171) from 3-point range. The Vols look to break out of the slump Saturday in the friendly confines of Thompson-Boling Arena.
• Junior John Fulkerson is shooting a team-best .662 from the field while averaging a career-best 11.4 points per game this season.
• Junior forward Yves Pons has blocked at least one shot in every game this season and has a team-high 21 blocks thus far.
• True freshman Josiah-Jordan James leads the Vols and ranks 12th in the SEC with 6.3 rebounds per game. He is the top-rebounding freshman in the league.
ABOUT JACKSONVILLE STATE
• Jacksonville State is coming off an incredibly impressive 2018-19 campaign. Last season saw the Gamecocks finish with an overall record of 24-9, a 15-3 mark in Ohio Valley play and a third-place league finish behind OVC powers Belmont and Murray State. However, their loss in the semis of the OVC Tournament saw their season end without a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
• The Gamecocks are coming off of back-to-back home victories over Evansville and Delaware State and own a record of 4-7. JSU has struggled to find consistent production from the point guard position this season, with expected producers Derek Cook and Marek Welsch each averaging fewer than five points per game.
• Jacksonville State, like Tennessee, took part in the 2019 Emerald Coast Classic in Niceville, Florida. In the Sunshine State, the Gamecocks took down Chicago State before falling in the fifth-place game to Chattanooga.
• JSU’s bright spot has been sophomore guard De’Torrion Ware, who is the Gamecocks’ leading scorer (11.5 ppg) and rebounder (6.3 rpg).
• JSU assistant coach Chase Richardson is seen as a rising star in the ranks of collegiate coaching. Following the 2016-17 season, which saw the Gamecocks win the OVC and advance to the NCAA Tournament, Richardson was placed on the NABC’s 30-under-30 list. Current UT assistant Kim English was placed on this same list in 2017-18 during his time as an assistant at Colorado.
• Jacksonville State is a public, state-funded institution located in Jacksonville, Alabama. It was founded in 1883, originally as a teachers’ college.
BARNES CLOSING IN ON 700TH CAREER COACHING WIN
• Rick Barnes is one win shy of logging his 700th career victory as a college head coach.
• With 699 Division I wins to his credit, he ranks seventh among active head coaches. He would become the 22nd head coach ever to log 700 Division I wins.
• He is five victories away from recording his 100th win at Tennessee.
GAINES SHOWING FLASHES
• True freshman wing Davonte Gaines has shown flashes of potential for the Vols in recent weeks.
• He is averaging 3.6 points and 2.1 rebounds with a 2.0 assist/turnover ratio in 11.0 minutes per game.
• Gaines is shooting 80 percent at the free-throw line (16 for 20) and has made each of his last 10 attempts.
• His 1.68 points per shot is the highest on the team.
BOTH UT HOOPS SQUADS RANKED
• Tennessee’s men are ranked No. 21, and the Lady Vols sit at No. 23 in this week’s AP Top 25 Poll.
• Tennessee is one of 11 schools to have both its men’s and women’s basketball teams ranked in the current AP poll, joining Arizona, Baylor, Florida State, Gonzaga, Kentucky, Louisville, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Oregon and West Virginia.
The Tennessee football team was back on the practice field Thursday afternoon in Knoxville for Bowl Practice #6. Watch some video from the media viewing periods.
Vols WR Marquez Callaway / Credit: 99.1 The Sports Animal
PORTLAND, Ore. — No. 23/24 Tennessee (8-2) will close its two-game West Coast swing on Saturday, as the Lady Vols battle Portland State (6-3) at Viking Pavilion. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. PT (5 p.m. ET).
This will mark the first time these programs have met on the hardwood. It will not, however, be UT’s first game in Portland, as the Lady Vols picked up a 74-51 victory over the University of Portland on Nov. 30, 1997.
The contest at Portland State marks only the fourth road game of the season for the Big Orange, and their current back-to-back road contests are the first for Tennessee since the Lady Vols played at Missouri (W, Feb. 17, 2019) and Texas A&M (L, Feb. 21, 2019) last season.
Before embarking on this excursion, Tennessee closed out a six-game home stand last Wednesday night with a 79-41 victory over Colorado State at Thompson-Boling Arena. That triumph was a bounce-back win after the Lady Vols suffered their first setback of the season on Dec. 8, falling to Texas, 66-60. The match-up with PSU will offer the Lady Vols another chance to redeem themselves after a loss.
Tennessee is coming off a 78-51 loss at No. 1/1 Stanford on Wednesday night at Maples Pavilion. Portland State, meanwhile, defeated cross-town rival Portland on Dec. 15, 77-71. The Vikings enter on a five-game winning streak and are 3-0 at home this season.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Saturday afternoon’s game will be streamed online for free by Pluto TV / Channel 532 with Teri Mariani (PxP) handling the call.
Go to Pluto.TV online and navigate through the channel guide to find channel 532. The channel will appear when it’s time for the telecast.
The contest also can be heard on Lady Vol Network radio stations and by audio stream, with Mickey Dearstone calling the action for the 21st season.
A link to the live audio stream can be found on each game’s Hoops Central page or the Lady Vol schedule on UTSports.com.
For a list of Lady Vol Network affiliates, please click on the Fans tab at the top of UTSports.com, select Vol Network and then click on Vol Network Affiliates in the black bar at the top of the page.
Air time for games on the Lady Vol Radio Network generally occurs 30 minutes prior to tip-off.
WEST COAST SWING INTO WINTER BREAK
Every two years, Tennessee’s standing home and home with Stanford takes the Lady Vols to the West Coast for a two-game swing just before winter break.
On this year’s trip, UT arrived in California on Monday evening and played at Stanford on Wednesday night. The team then traveled on Thursday to Portland, where the team will face Portland State on Saturday at 2 p.m. PT (5 ET).
These two games are Tennessee’s final contests before everyone goes separate ways for winter break.
Players will report back to campus on Dec. 27 to begin preparations for a Dec. 29 home contest vs. Howard.
SCHEDULE AFTER THE BREAK
The Lady Vols return to Knoxville on Dec. 26 to resume practice.
They will play their last game of 2019 on Dec. 29, as Howard University comes to town for a 2 p.m. contest at Thompson-Boling Arena. The game will be streamed on SECN+.
Tennessee will open the Southeastern Conference schedule on Jan. 2, as the Missouri Tigers come to town.
The tip time for the UT-Mizzou game has been moved to 5 p.m. ET to avoid a conflict with the Vol football team’s 7 p.m. date with Indiana in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl that evening.
Tickets are available at AllVols.com.
RECAPPING OUR LAST GAME
The No. 23/24 Lady Vols suffered their second loss of the season at top-ranked Stanford on Wednesday night, falling in Maples Pavilion, 78-51.
Tennessee (8-2) was led by junior Rennia Davis, who finished with 14 points and six rebounds. Freshman Jordan Horston was UT’s second-highest scorer, posting nine points and five boards.
Junior Kiana Williams led Stanford (10-0), finishing the night with 19 points and seven assists. Sophomore Lexie Hull and freshman Ashten Pretchel were also in double figures for the Cardinal with 11 and 10, respectively.
NOTES FROM THE LAST GAME
Rising Up The 1,000-Point Ranks: Junior forward Rennia Davis led Tennessee in scoring for the seventh time in the past eight 10 games, tallying 14 points and bringing her career total to 1,023. She moved past Diamond DeShields (1,018) into 44th place in UT’s 1,000-point club.
Season-Low In Turnovers: Tennessee is averaging 16.9 turnovers per game but kept its miscues down vs. Stanford. The Lady Vols committed only 11 turnovers vs. the Cardinal.
Working Down Low: Junior center Kasiyahna Kushkituah paced the Big Orange in rebounds with seven vs. Stanford. She also tallied five points, two assists and a steal as well as drawing five Cardinal fouls.
TENNESSEE TOPICS
Tennessee has outworked eight of 10 foes on the glass this season and has a +14.8 rebound margin that ranks No. 4 nationally through the game vs. Stanford.
UT is pulling down 51.2 rebounds per contest while allowing 36.4. The Lady Vols’ per game total ranks No. 2 in the nation.
The Lady Vols average 15.7 second chance points per game and have won that category in every contest but one (Central Arkansas).
The Lady Vols’ bench has been a strength this season, with the Big Orange holding a 27.5 to 16.0 advantage in points from reserves.
UT has been at its best offensively in the third and first quarters this season, averaging 19.5 and 19.0, respectively, during those periods. On the defensive end, the Lady Vols are their stingiest in the second frame, allowing only 11.9 points over that 10-minute stretch.
Tennessee has shot for a higher percentage from the field in every game except for the Texas and Stanford match-ups, in which the Longhorns knocked down 36.2 to UT’s 30.6 percent and the Cardinal prevailed, 42.6 to 27.8. UT shoots 43.0 from the field for the season.
The Lady Vols are allowing opponents only 30.0 percent shooting from the field and have allowed only No. 1/1 Stanford (42.6) to shoot better than 36% this season.
The Lady Vols have limited foes to only 23.0 percent shooting from the three-point arc after Stanford had an 11-for-30 night vs. UT.
Tennessee had recorded 16 or more assists in each game this season until dishing out seven vs. Stanford. Its season-best mark for dimes is 25 vs. UAPB.
The Big Orange women have won the opening tip in all 10 games.
LADY VOLS TRENDING
Rising to the competition, Rennia Davis is averaging 23.5 points and 8.0 rebounds vs. ranked foes. She has shot 42.5 percent from the field and 47.4 percent on threes. Versus unranked competition, she is averaging 14.6 ppg. and 8.5 rpg. while shooting 45.5 percent from the field but only 19.2 from long range.Davis is hitting 80 percent at the free throw line vs. ranked teams and 78.6 vs. unranked squads.
Beyond Davis leading UT in scoring and rebounding, UT’s next six leading scorers include a sophomore, a freshman, a junior, a freshman, a sophomore and a freshman.
Davis has scored in double figures in eight straight contests and has five double-doubles in 2019-20.
Davis is averaging double figures in points for the third straight year. If she averages 10+ in 2019-20, she’d become the 24th Lady Vol to do so in three different seasons. It’s worth noting, only 12 players have averaged 10+ four times while at UT.
Sophomore guard Jazmine Massengill is one of the nation’s best at taking care of the basketball, as confirmed by her assist-to-turnover ratio. She ranks No. 31 in the nation and No. 2 in the SEC at 2.5 to 1. She has tallied 40 assists vs. 16 turnovers.
Massengill also has been looking for her shot, scoring in double figures in four of Tennessee’s last six games, tallying a career-high 16 points against Colorado State. She is averaging 10.0 ppg. in the past three games.
UT’s freshmen are not shy about contributing. Jordan Horston leads the team in assists (45) and steals (16) and is second in three-pointers (12). Tamari Key is tops in blocks (19) and field goal percentage (.593) among starters, and Emily Saunders has the best field goal percentage (.714) among reserves.
This marks the first-ever meeting between Tennessee and Portland State.
While the Lady Vols have not met the Vikings, they have met PSU’s cross-town rival, Portland. UT holds a 2-0 record against the Pilots.
Tennessee won at Portland, 74-51, on Nov. 30, 1997, and defeated that program in Knoxville, 94-57, on Nov. 13, 1998. Current Lady Vol head coach Kellie Harper played at Tennessee during those seasons.
The Big Orange women are 2-0 vs. current members of the Big Sky Conference. Both of those wins came against Montana.
Former Lady Vols Jaime Nared (Westview) and Jordan Reynolds (Central Catholic) attended high school in Portland. Laurie Milligan was a native of Tigard, just southwest of Portland.
ABOUT PORTLAND STATE
The Vikings are members of the Big Sky Conference and earned a berth in the 2018-19 NCAA Tournament.
Lynn Kennedy is in his fifth year as head coach at Portland State, fashioning a 70-67 record there, and is 321-246 in his 20th season in coaching.
Kennedy coached at Southern Oregon for 10 seasons before taking over the PSU job. He also had head coaching stints at New Mexico Highlands, Idaho State (interim) and Northwest University.
Portland State returned two starters from last season’s squad, which posted a 25-8 overall mark and 14-6 league record to finish fourth.
Top returnees include 6-4 senior center Jordan Stotler and 5-6 junior guard Kylie Jimenez.
PSU welcomed six newcomers and regained the services of five other players who sat out a year ago for a variety of reasons.
Portland State owns a 6-3 overall record, forging a 3-0 mark at Viking Pavilion this season.
After standing 1-3 through their first four contests, the Vikings have won five in a row.
PSU is an outstanding free throw shooting team, hitting 81.6 percent. The top seven scorers shoot better than 79 percent from the charity stripe.
Redshirt junior forward Tatiana Struen is leading PSU in scoring and rebounding with averages of 15.1 and 9.1, respectively.
Four other Vikings are scoring in double figures, including 6-0 sophomore guard Desirae Hansen (13.0 ppg.), 5-6 junior guard Kylie Jimenez (12.1 ppg.), 6-0 freshman guard Belle Frazier (10.8 ppg.) and 6-4 senior center Jordan Stotler (10.6 ppg.).
RECAPPING THE VIKINGS’ LAST GAME
With five players scoring in double figures, the Portland State women’s basketball team erased a 15-point halftime deficit to defeat cross-town rival Portland, 77-71, at the Chiles Center on Sunday afternoon.
The win marked the fifth straight for the Vikings, who overcame their largest halftime deficit since Jan. 8, 2010, to improve to 6-3 overall on the year. The win was also the third straight over the Pilots, which is only the second time in the program’s Big Sky era (1996-present) the Vikings have tallied three in a row.
Leading the Vikings was Tatiana Streun, who continued her dominating performance in the post, scoring a team-high 17 points while collecting 12 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the year.
PSU hit 16 of 21 from the free throw line (76.2%).
Tennessee safety Jaylin McCollough spoke to reporters on Thursday to discuss bowl practices ahead of the January 2nd TaxSlayer Gator Bowl in Jacksonville vs. Indiana.
Vols S Jaylen McCollough / Credit: 99.1 The Sports Animal
Tennessee defensive end Matthew Butler spoke to reporters on Thursday to discuss bowl practices ahead of the January 2nd TaxSlayer Gator Bowl in Jacksonville vs. Indiana.
Vols DE Matthew Butler / Credit: 99.1 The Sports Animal
Tennessee outside linebacker Kivon Bennett spoke to reporters on Thursday to discuss bowl practices ahead of the January 2nd TaxSlayer Gator Bowl in Jacksonville vs. Indiana.
Vols OLB Kivon Bennett / Credit: 99.1 The Sports Animal
Tennessee place kicker Brent Cimaglia spoke to reporters on Thursday to discuss bowl practices ahead of the January 2nd TaxSlayer Gator Bowl in Jacksonville vs. Indiana.
Vols K Brent Cimaglia / Credit: 99.1 The Sports Animal
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