Holdsclaw, DeMoss Officially Hall-of-Famers

Holdsclaw, DeMoss Officially Hall-of-Famers

Credit: UT Athletics

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2018 was officially inducted on Saturday night at the Tennessee Theatre. Former Lady Vol standout Chamique Holdsclaw and former UT assistant coach Mickie DeMoss were among seven women who were honored for their stellar career accomplishments.

Other 2018 inductees included Ceal Barry (coach), Rose Marie Battaglia (veteran, contributor), Chris Dailey (contributor – assistant coach), Katie Smith (player) and Tina Thompson (player). Members of the Women’s Professional Basketball League (WBL) also were recognized as “Trailblazers of the Game.”

The inductees participated in media interviews on Friday afternoon at the hall and an autograph session on Saturday at the hall before being feted Saturday night in front of a sold-out crowd. Many former Lady Vol players and staff members were on hand throughout the weekend to share in recognizing the achievements of Holdsclaw and DeMoss.

The 2018 Induction marked the 20th anniversary of the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, which held its grand opening and inaugural induction in 1999.  With the induction of the Class of 2018, the Hall of Fame has honored 164 inductees, with Holdsclaw and DeMoss becoming the 11th and 12th with Tennessee ties entering the hall. UT also has seen head coach Pat Summitt (1999), athletics director Gloria Ray (2010) and student-athletes Cindy Brogdon (2002), Daedra Charles-Furlow (2007), Bridgette Gordon (2007), Nikki McCray-Penson (2012), Cindy Noble Hauserman (2000), Jill Rankin Schneider (2008), Patricia Roberts (2000) and Holly Warlick (2001) enshrined.

2018 LADY VOL INDUCTEES

CHAMIQUE HOLDSCLAW (Player)
• Holdsclaw is the all-time leading scorer and rebounder at Tennessee in men’s or women’s basketball
• She is also the all-time leading scorer in SEC women’s basketball
• Holdsclaw guided the Lady Vols to three NCAA National Championships (1996, 1997, 1998)
• She was a four-time Kodak/WBCA All-American and two-time Naismith Player of the Year
• Holdsclaw was named the Honda-Broderick Award winner in 1998 and was named the James E. Sullivan award winner for top amateur athlete in the U.S. in 1998
• She was named WNBA Rookie of the Year in 1999 and was a WNBA All-Star six times
• Holdsclaw was the WNBA Scoring Champion in 2002 and was the WNBA Rebounding Champion in 2002 and 2003
• She helped guide USA Basketball to a gold medal in the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney
• Holdsclaw was a WBCA All-American in high school in 1995

MICKIE DEMOSS (Contributor – Assistant Coach)
• DeMoss’ overall record as an assistant coach is 848-209
• As an assistant coach, she helped guide Tennessee to six NCAA National Championships including 12 NCAA Final Four appearances
• DeMoss also helped guide Tennessee to 11 SEC regular season championships and 10 SEC tournament championships.
• She has helped develop 11 Lady Vols into WBCA All-Americans and three Naismith Players of the Year
• DeMoss also helped develop seven Lady Vols into U.S. Olympians
• She was named the WBCA NCAA Division I Assistant Coach of the Year in 2000
• In 1998, DeMoss was named the Women’s Basketball Journal Top Assistant Coach in the Country
• She was an assistant coach for the Indiana Fever for two years, helping guide them to the 2012 WNBA Championship
• DeMoss has worked as an assistant coach under four Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame coaches (Pat Summitt, Joe Ciampi, Gail Goestenkors and Lin Dunn)

 

UT Athletics

Dierks Bentley Scores 17th No. 1 Single as “Woman, Amen” Hits the Top of the Charts

Dierks Bentley Scores 17th No. 1 Single as “Woman, Amen” Hits the Top of the Charts

Dierks Bentley scored the 17th No. 1 single of his career as “Woman, Amen” reached the top of both the Billboard Country Airplay chart and the Mediabase chart.

The tune is the lead single from Dierks’ ninth studio album, The Mountain, which dropped on June 8. The impetus for the album’s creation was Dierk’s June 2017 performance at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in the town of Telluride in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. Dierks returned to Telluride a short time later for a week-long retreat with fellow songwriters Natalie Hemby, Luke Dick, Ross Copperman, Jon Randall, Jon Nite and Ashley Gorley and wrote the bulk of the album’s songs, including the title track.

However, “Woman, Amen” was penned by Dierks, Josh Kear and Ross Copperman in Nashville in between the Telluride Bluegrass Festival and his songwriting retreat.

“My wife and our relationship has been the one constant element in my life over all the ups and downs of my career and personal life,” said Dierks. “Our journey together has made me the man I am today. I doubt my heart would even recognize the old me. This song addresses that in the most direct possible way. The personal gratitude expressed in the lyrics, mixed with a track that leans heavily on some bigger sounds, is the perfect way to introduce the album.”

photo by Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com

Be Part of the Tennessee Takeover in Charlotte Sept. 1

Be Part of the Tennessee Takeover in Charlotte Sept. 1

Credit: UT Athletics

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Volunteer football fans are encouraged to be a part of the ‘Tennessee Takeover’ in Charlotte, N.C. on Sept. 1 when UT faces West Virginia at Bank of America Stadium in the Belk College Kickoff.

Tickets are available now at AllVols.comfor the 3:30 p.m. matchup between the Vols and the Mountaineers.

Fans can also call 1-800-332-VOLS for ticket information, including season ticket packages.

The trip from Knoxville to Charlotte is just over 200 miles long and is a less than four-hour drive. Bank of American Stadium is the perfect destination for a ‘Tennessee Takeover’ to open the 2018 season.

The Vols’ clash against the Mountaineers will be the first meeting all-time between the two storied programs. West Virginia is expected to be a preseason Top 25 team behind its explosive offense, while a hungry Tennessee squad will kick off a new era under head coach Jeremy Pruitt, who brings five national championships with him to Rocky Top.

Following the season-opener, Tennessee welcomes a pair of non-conference opponents to Neyland Stadium in ETSU at 4 p.m. on Sept. 8 and UTEP at 12 p.m. on Sept. 15 before hosting Florida on Sept. 22 (kickoff is TBD) to start SEC play.

UT Athletics
Watch Luke Bryan Pay Tribute to Randy Travis by Covering “On the Other Hand” at CMA Fest’s Nissan Stadium

Watch Luke Bryan Pay Tribute to Randy Travis by Covering “On the Other Hand” at CMA Fest’s Nissan Stadium

During his CMA Fest headlining set at Nissan Stadium on June 10, Luke Bryan delivered an impromptu tribute to Randy Travis after spotting the Country Music Hall of Fame singer in the front row.

After opening the show with three songs from his own catalog—“Country Girl (Shake It For Me),” “Sunrise, Sunburn, Sunset” and “Most People Are Good”—Luke covered “On the Other Hand,” a tune Randy took to No. 1 in 1986.

“I’ve been wanting to sing to you for a long time, buddy,” said Luke after the song. “That was unrehearsed. I didn’t know you were going to be here, but I hope you enjoyed it. I love you. Thank you.”

On June 9, Randy was presented with the inaugural Cracker Barrel Country Legend Award, an honor given to country musicians with more than 30 years in the business who have past partnerships with Cracker Barrel’s music program. Cracker Barrel made a $5,000 donation in Randy’s name to the CMA Foundation.

Watch Luke sing “On the Other Hand” below.

photo by Jason Simanek; video by Mackenzie Cooper

Debauchery Ensues as Darius Rucker Teams With Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan & Charles Kelley in New “Straight to Hell” Video [Watch]

Debauchery Ensues as Darius Rucker Teams With Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan & Charles Kelley in New “Straight to Hell” Video [Watch]

Darius Rucker is hoping his hot streak continues with the release of his new single, “Straight to Hell.” The tune follows back-to-back No. 1 singles, “If I Told You” and “For the First Time,” from his 2017 album, When Was the Last Time.

Darius enlisted the help of a few of his A-list friends—Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean and Lady Antebellum’s Charles Kelley—to provide vocals on “Straight to Hell,” a Drivin’ N Cryin’ cover from the late ’80s.

“‘Straight to Hell’ was huge in my day—when it was played in the bar, every single person in the bar was singing and hugging their best friend,” says Darius to Nash Country Daily. “I’ve wanted to cut that song since I came to Nashville, and I kept saying I was going to cut it someday. For this record, I was thinking about cutting it. Then Charles Kelley called me out of the blue and says, ‘Man, I was just listening to Drivin’ N Cryin’s “Straight to Hell” and I think you should cut it, and you should let me sing on it.’ I took that as the universe telling me it was time to cut the song, and I cut it. Jason [Aldean] and Luke [Bryan] and Charles and I are good buddies, so getting them to come sing on it made it something special.”

For the new video, Darius, Jason, Luke and Charles engage in a little speakeasy debauchery, including drinking, cheating at cards and robbing the till.

Watch the new video below.

photo by Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com

Jason Isbell to Release New Live Album From Ryman Auditorium Shows + Announces 6 New Ryman Dates

Jason Isbell to Release New Live Album From Ryman Auditorium Shows + Announces 6 New Ryman Dates

If you didn’t get the chance to see Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit perform one of six shows at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium in October 2017, you can can live vicariously through Jason’s upcoming album, Live From the Ryman.

The upcoming album features 13 songs—including “Cover Me Up” and “If We Were Vampires”—that were recorded live at the Ryman.

The new album will drop on Oct. 19, just in time to put you in the mood for Jason’s new six-night run at the Ryman on Oct. 22, 23, 24, 26, 27 and 28. Tickets for the new dates go on sale on June 15.

Jason’s 400 Unit band features Derry deBorja (keyboards), Chad Gamble (drums), Jimbo Hart (bass), Amanda Shires (fiddle) and Sadler Vaden (guitar).

Live From the Ryman Track List

  1. “Hope The High Road”
  2. “24 Frames”
  3. “White Man’s World”
  4. “Flagship”
  5. “Cumberland Gap”
  6. “Something More Than Free”
  7. “The Life You Chose”
  8. “Elephant”
  9. “Flying Over Water”
  10. “Last Of My Kind”
  11. “Cover Me Up”
  12. “Super 8”
  13. “If We Were Vampires

photo by Jason Simanek

Watch Kelsea Ballerini Avoid All of the Lovey-Dovey Clichés in New Video for “I Hate Love Songs”

Watch Kelsea Ballerini Avoid All of the Lovey-Dovey Clichés in New Video for “I Hate Love Songs”

Kelsea Ballerini dropped a new video for her current single, “I Hate Love Songs.”

The tongue-and-cheek ode to modern-day romance, which was directed by Traci Goudie, features Kelsea avoiding clichéd lovey-dovey scenarios, including catching a wedding bouquet, kissing in the rain and more.

Co-penned by Kelsea, Shane McAnally and Trevor Rosen, “I Hate Love Songs” is the second single from Kelsea’s 2017 sophomore album, Unapologetically.

“I will never forget introducing ‘I Hate Love Songs’ at the Grand Ole Opry before my record was even out, and just the overwhelming feeling of magic,” said Kelsea. “I’d never experienced anything like that before with a song. It’s sweet and sassy and I hope you love it as much as I do.”

“I Hate Love Songs” is No. 37 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart after 14 weeks.

Watch the video for “I Hate Love Songs” below.

photo by Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com

Photo Gallery: CMA Fest’s Nissan Stadium Night 4 With Luke Bryan, FGL, Thomas Rhett, Dwight Yoakam & More

Photo Gallery: CMA Fest’s Nissan Stadium Night 4 With Luke Bryan, FGL, Thomas Rhett, Dwight Yoakam & More

CMA Fest came to a close on June 10 as fans packed Nissan Stadium to see performances from Ricky Skaggs, Brett Eldredge, Cole Swindell, Dierks Bentley, Florida Georgia Line, Bebe Rexha, Dwight Yoakam and Luke Bryan, as well as guest appearances by Brothers Osborne, Backstreet Boys and Morgan Wallen.

Take a look at our photo gallery, courtesy of Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com.

We’ve got more photos, courtesy of Jason Simanek.

main photo by Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com

Photo Gallery: CMA Fest’s Nissan Stadium Night 3 With Chris Stapleton, Keith Urban, Kelsea Ballerini, Sam Hunt, Dustin Lynch & More

Photo Gallery: CMA Fest’s Nissan Stadium Night 3 With Chris Stapleton, Keith Urban, Kelsea Ballerini, Sam Hunt, Dustin Lynch & More

Night 3 at CMA Fest’s Nissan Stadium on June 9 saw a packed house enjoying the sounds of Jillian Jacqueline (national anthem), Lee Ann Womack, Sam Hunt, Jon Pardi, Dustin Lynch, Kelsea Ballerini, Chris Stapleton and Keith Urban.

Check out our photo gallery, courtesy of photographer Jason Simanek.

all photos by Jason Simanek

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