A Flash Flood Watch is in effect through Wednesday morning for East Tennessee after Subtropical Storm Alberto made landfall.
Two to five inches of rain is expected in the area from the system. Heavy rainfall could be a major danger with possible flooding in low lying areas.
Officials warn “do not drive through flooded spots” especially if you do not know how deep the water is. “Turn Around Don’t Drown.”
By Jimmy Hyams
When Gary Parrish of CBS Sports ranked Tennessee’s men’s basketball team No. 4 in his way-too-early top 25, he barely heard a whisper.
When he moved UT ahead of Villanova – which might lose Final Four star guard Donte DeVincenzo to the NBA early — into the No. 3 spot recently, bedlam ensued.
“What’s been wild is that I had Tennessee at 4 for basically the past month and it didn’t get nearly as much attention as having Tennessee at 3,’’ Parrish said in a recent interview on Sports Talk, Sports Radio WNML.
“I acknowledge that (UT) is the first school on that list that made me flinch and go, `OK, really, is this where they ought to be?’’’
Maybe. Maybe not.
“You look at a team that returns just about every meaningful piece from an SEC co-champion,’’ Parrish explained.
Parrish said UT’s 35-game sample last year (and 26-9 record) in which Ken Pomroy had the Vols rated in the top 15 on offense and defense suggests the Vols are “really good, obviously much better than what the recruiting rankings suggested they would ever be.’’
And, frankly, coach Rick Barnes has surprised Parrish with his success at Tennessee after his ouster at Texas.
“I don’t say that as an insult to Rick at all,’’ Parrish said. “I’ve known Rick a long time. I like Rick a lot and I have a good relationship with him.’’
But, the way UT has been built – the top seven players last year were all three-star recruits – isn’t the way you succeed at a high level in college hoops.
“That’s why it is such a unique story, what happened to Tennessee, because just go look around the other high-major leagues – championship teams aren’t built the way he built this team,’’ Parrish said. “They’re just not.’’
Not at Kentucky or Duke or North Carolina or Kansas.
In fact, not one player on the UT roster was offered by one of those bluebloods of college basketball.
“So when recruiting (at UT) wasn’t going well,’’ Parrish said, “I just assumed that the results wouldn’t go as well, either, because that’s usually the way it goes.
“He (Barnes) would probably tell you, we’re getting the guys that we want to get. We’re recruiting a certain level of player, and I’m sure that’s true to some degree. But the recruiting hasn’t gone the way high-level recruiting usually goes based on recruiting rankings – which is a pretty good indicator of who is and who isn’t going to be good at a high major level.’’
So to have a preseason top five team is “remarkable,’’ Parrish said. “It’s something that is exceeding most reasonable – if not all reasonable – expectations.’’
Parrish said his preseason poll is based on returning players, the team’s record the previous season, newcomers and what else is happening around the country.
“I don’t think a top three ranking (for UT) is actually too high based on what I just described,’’ Parrish said.
Parrish said his high rating of UT is a compliment to both Barnes and the players.
“I would imagine most of those players, if not all of those players, thought they were better than what they were (ranked) coming out of high school,’’ Parrish said. “But the recruiting analyst do a pretty good job of identifying the elite talent.’’
Parrish said there isn’t much difference in a player ranked 80th or 125th but there is a “massive difference’’ in a player ranked No. 1 v. No. 30.
Most of UT’s players were ranked from 150 to 250. Grant Williams, the SEC player of the year as a sophomore, was ranked in the high 100s and picked Tennessee over an Ivy League school and a mid-major.
“It’s possible that some of these (UT) players were undervalued,’’ Parrish said, “but it seems also undeniable that Rick Barnes and his staff have done a great job with them as individuals and molding them into a truly nationally relevant team.
“It is unique. You won’t find many Power Five co-champions that don’t have a top 100 recruit on the roster. But that’s what Tennessee had last year and if the projections play out the way they should, we could be looking at a back-to-back SEC championship team that is built in an incredibly unique way at a high-major level.’’
Parrish did admit he didn’t see this type success for Barnes.
“I never expected Rick Barnes to have a preseason top five team,’’ he said, “but he is about to have one at Tennessee and I hope all fans are appreciating it and enjoying it because it is a unique situation.’’
Sponsored by Big Kahuna Wings: The wings that changed it all
ATHENS, Ga. — Cortni Emanuel hit a solo home run in the top of the eighth inning to lead No. 7 seed Georgia to a 2-1 win on Saturday as the Lady Vols were eliminated in the NCAA Athens Super Regional.
Tennessee (48-14) rallied in the bottom of the seventh to tie the game at 1, but Emanuel’s shot proved to be all the Bulldogs (48-11) would need in extras to punch their ticket to the Women’s College World Series.
Caylan Arnold was dealt the loss for UT and ends her season with a 26-6 record. Arnold went 1.2 innings in relief and recorded a pair of strikeouts after Matty Moss struck out three batters in 6.1 innings of work.
After six innings of scoreless softball, the Bulldogs broke through in the top of the seventh. Justice Milz led off the frame with a single up the middle before Alyssa DiCarlo stepped in and hit a triple to the right center gap, allowing Milz to race around and score the go-ahead run. A fielder’s choice then set up runners on the corners with zero outs, but Arnold was able to work her way out of the jam, holding UGA to the lone run in the inning.
UT went into the bottom of the seventh needing a run to keep their season alive. After a groundout and a fielder’s choice, the Lady Vols were down to their last out with a runner on first. Haley Bearden was then hit by a pitch to advance Brooke Langston to second, and Cailin Hannon came up to pinch hit with the Jack Turner Stadium crowd ready to celebrate a Georgia victory. The freshman from Franklin, Tenn., came through in the clutch, however, and delivered a single to center field that scored Langston and tied the game.
In the top of the eighth, Arnold was able to retire two straight batters before Emanuel stepped in and launched one over the right field fence, giving the Bulldogs the decisive 2-1 edge.
Georgia pitcher Mary Wilson Avant went a complete eight innings in the win. Avant had five strikeouts and allowed just four hits on the day to improve to 12-3.
UP NEXT: The loss concludes the 2018 season for the Lady Vols. The team finished with a 48-14 record, matching its win total from last season. UT suffers postseason elimination in the NCAA Super Regional for the second straight year.
-UT Athletics
ATHENS, Ga. — Tennessee scored two runs in the sixth inning and one in the seventh to cut into a 4-0 deficit, but it was not enough as Georgia took the opening game of the NCAA Athens Super Regional on Friday at Jack Turner Stadium.
After the Bulldogs (46-11) hit back-to-back home runs in the third inning to go ahead by four, the Lady Vols (48-13) were able to settle in defensively and held Georgia to zero runs over the final three frames. Caylan Arnold went a full six innings in the loss, recording three strikeouts while yielding seven hits.
Georgia got out to a strong start with a pair of first-inning runs that made it 2-0. Cortni Emanuel led off with a bunt single, and two batters later a Justice Milz double to left center brought Emanuel all the way home from first. A base knock from Alyssa DiCarlo put Milz on third before she was able to tag up on a deep fly from Alysen Febrey.
The Bulldogs would increase their lead in the bottom of the third thanks to back-to-back solo home runs from DiCarlo and Febrey. DiCarlo finished the game with a 2-for-3, 2 RBI performance while Febrey went 1-for-2 with a pair of RBIs herself.
Following a rain delay that lasted one hour and 57 minutes, the Lady Vols came back on the field looking to find some momentum that would help them claw back into the game. Tennessee finally found an offensive spark in the top of the sixth, as Meghan Gregg led off with a line drive single up the middle and Chelsea Seggern was hit by a pitch to put two runners on with no outs. A groundout from Ashley Morgan advanced the runners to second and third, and Abby Lockman lifted a deep fly ball that allowed Gregg to tag up and put a run on the board for the Big Orange. Amanda Ayala then drilled a double to left center that brought in Seggern and cut the UGA advantage to 4-2.
After Arnold sent the Bulldogs down with four pitches in the bottom of the sixth, the Lady Vols came right back up to bat trying to carry over their newfound firepower. Leach drew a leadoff walk and Jenna Holcomb followed with a walk of her own. Gregg then grounded into a fielder’s choice, but was able to beat out the throw to first and negate the double play. Leach advanced to third on the play, and as the attempted throw to get Gregg out got past the first baseman, Leach took off for home and scored to make it a one-run ballgame. Seggern then hit into a fielder’s choice that took UT down to its final out. A fielding error kept Tennessee alive for a moment, but it would prove to be too little, too late, as Lockman flied out to center to end the game.
Kylie Bass earned the win for the Bulldogs, improving to 15-3 on the season. Bass went 5.2 innings and struck out two batters, before Mary Wilson Avant came in to secure the last four outs.
UP NEXT: The Lady Vols look to keep their season alive on Saturday as they take on the Bulldogs in Game 2 at 3:00 p.m.
UT Athletics
By Jimmy Hyams
Despite having home court advantage, Knoxville won only one of the seven adult 55 state championships held at West Hills Courts and Tyson Family Tennis Center.
The Knoxville 55 and over team captained by Scott Thompson won the adult 55 and over with a convincing 5-0 record and a 12-3 mark in individual matches.
The team consisted of John Watson, Ken Wuelzer, Mark Keck, Stan Kimmett, Craig Allen, Dale Rehkamp, Steven Beasley, Greg Carga, Robert Scott, Gary Irwin, Mike Canada, Chris Curtis and Phil Chandler.
Murfreesboro was second at 4-1.
The Knoxville 4.0 women’s team of Long placed second to Nashville.
The Knoxville 4.0 men’s team of Jack Hatfield placed second in state as did the women’s 55 and over team of Nelson.
Sectionals will be held in Asheville in September.
Sponsored by Big Kahuna Wings: The wings that changed it all
By Jimmy Hyams
Knoxville’s Chris Groer was looking to four-peat as the 40s doubles champion in the Atlanta Senior Invitational.
Then he was looking for a partner.
Groer and Knoxville’s John Fritts, a former Tennessee tennis player, had won the Atlanta event three times in a row. But Fritts cramped during his singles match,
Groer noticed that his singles nemesis, Eduardo Rincon, a former Davis Cup player for Colombia, wasn’t playing doubles.
Groer asked Rincon. Rincon said yes. And the rest of the doubles field said “uncle.’’
Groer and Rincon blitzed through the field, losing only four games in xxx matches, capturing 20 games in a row and taking the finals with ease, 6-0, 6-2.
“Eduardo was back by the fence, ripping returns,’’ Groer said. “The only time he came to the net is to shake hands.’’
Groer and Rincon, the tennis coach at Kennesaw (Ga) State, have crossed paths as opponents several times. Groer lost a Futures match to Rincon on the clay in Florida in 1998. Last year, he lost to Rincon in singles in the Senior Cup in Huntsville, Ala., 11-9 in a super tie-breaker.
“He’s had my number in singles for about 20 years,’’ Groer said.
On the flip side, Groer has never lost to Rincon in doubles.
“It was sort of a good partnership,’’ Groer said.
Due to other obligations, Groer was unable to play in the 40 singles. He’s won it twice and lost in the finals twice.
Next year, Groer advances to the 45s in singles and doubles.
Next weekend, Groer and Fritts will play for Tennessee in the 35 division of the Senior Cup, along with big-serving John Chesworth of Knoxville. It will be Groer’s 10th year in a row in the competition.
In the 45s, Knoxville will be represented by Bob Williams, Taylor Hamilton and John Gibson.
Georgia is the No. 1 seed, Tennessee the No. 2 seed.
Sponsored by Big Kahuna Wings: The wings that changed it all
By Jimmy Hyams
Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt made about a dozen position changes during spring practice.
He moved a running back to cornerback, a receiver to cornerback, a receiver to corner then safety then back to receiver. He moved several defensive linemen to offensive line. He moved a tight end to linebacker, a linebacker to tight end.
Pruitt’s reasoning was two-fold: 1. Find the best position for the player, and, 2. build depth.
“The big thing is, we’re trying to figure out who our best football players are and we’re trying to figure out what their strengths and weaknesses are,’’ Pruitt said.
“At linebacker, you’ll have guys that play inside backer and they’ll also have the ability to play outside backer. So if you have injuries, it’s an opportunity to create depth.’’
Or if you have defections.
Tennessee had a surprising defection Thursday night when Darrin Kirkland Jr., considered one of the team’s better defenders, announced he was leaving Tennessee. He will be a grad transfer with two years of eligibility remaining. He sat out last season with a knee injury and missed about half of the 2016 season due to injury.
Filling Kirkland’s shoes won’t be easy. Daniel Bituli and Quart’e Sapp are the likely starters at inside linebacker, if UT does indeed run a 3-4. Will Ignont is probably the next best inside backer. Or maybe it will be freshman J.J. Peterson.
Kirkland’s departure is an example of why Pruitt moves players around to build depth.
Pruitt didn’t just try to find backers who could play inside or out. He looked for defensive backs who could play corner or safety. And there was more.
“We actually had some guys that changed sides of the ball,’’ Pruitt said.
“So, we’re just trying to create value in them and it probably helps them learn the entire system.’’
Is there a chance Pruitt could make more position changes based on what he saw during the spring game.
“There’s probably some guys that are going to be moved that have no idea that they’re going to be moved,’’ Pruitt said in an interview on SportsTalk, WMNL radio. “So, we’ll have to see where that goes this summer and fall.’’
Sponsored by Big Kahuna Wings: The wings that changed it all
Luke Bryan announced that his 10th annual Farm Tour will visit six cities this fall. The tour will make stops at farms in Ohio, Illinois, Iowa, Florida, South Carolina and Georgia between Sept. 27–Oct. 6.
Over the years, Luke has awarded more than 50 college scholarships to local students from farming families within the communities the tour has played.
“I can’t believe we’ve been doing this 10 years.” said Luke. “Our goal was to bring big-city production concerts into these small towns across the U.S. giving those communities the opportunity to attend shows that would never come their way.”
Tickets for the this year’s Farm Tour go on sale on June 6 at 10 a.m. local time. Presale tickets for Luke’s Fan Club (the Nut House), Luke’s official App and Citi® card members begin on June 1 at 10 a.m. local time.
Luke Bryan Farm Tour 2018
Sept. 27 – Irwin, OH – Springfork Farms
Sept. 28 – Pesotum, IL – Atkins Farm
Sept. 29 – Boone, IA – Ziel Farm
Oct. 4 – Archer, FL – Whitehurst Cattle Company
Oct. 5 – North Augusta, SC – Misty Morning Farms
Oct. 6 – Ringgold, GA – Doug Yates Farms
photo by Jason Simanek
![Eli Young Band’s Emotionally Charged Video for “Love Ain’t” Follows the Love Story of a Wounded Warrior & His Soulmate [Watch]](https://cdn.socast.io/6616/sites/1446/2018/05/25085208/Eli-Young-Band.jpg#aqua_resizer_image_not_local)
Eli Young Band released an emotionally charged video for their new single, “Love Ain’t.”
The new clip follows the love story of Taylor Morris—an explosive ordnance disposal technician with the Navy who became a quadruple amputee after an explosion in Afghanistan in 2012—and his girlfriend of more than a decade, Danielle, who remained by Taylor’s side.
The inspiring clip features personal videos of Taylor’s rehab, his 2013 homecoming in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and marriage to Danielle.
“We first learned about Taylor and Danielle a couple of years ago, and there is no doubt their story speaks to what love is,” says EYB frontman Mike Eli. “When thinking about their story and the deeper meaning in this song—how important love is and to know what love ain’t—we knew the video should reflect that. [Band members] James, Chris, Jon and I all have family members who are part of the military so we know there are more couples struggling every day and how quickly lives are changed.”
Eli Young Band teamed with Wounded Warrior Project for the video to help bring to light the growing needs of servicemen and women, their families and caregivers. You can help support Wounded Warriors by making a donation today.
Watch the video for “Love Ain’t” below.
photo courtesy of Triple 8 Management
On this episode of the My Video Is Totally Awesome Podcast, NCD editor in chief Jim Casey sits down with Aaron Tippin to talk about the video for his 1995 No. 1 hit, “That’s as Close as I’ll Get to Loving You.”
First of all, you’ll notice the video is in black and white. Why? Because this is the Casablanca of ’90s country music videos—full of angst and unrequited love. Now, back to the play-by-play. This is our first glimpse of what we assume to be a rich poindexter (notice his big house, nerdy glasses and suspenders). Also, notice his smoking-hot wife, who is wearing a bathrobe because she doesn’t have to go to work. Must be a nice life.
Take a gander at the yard help—yep, it’s Aaron Tippin with his glorious mustache, flannel shirt and tool belt. And yes, he is wearing an undershirt (just a little foreshadowing).
Aaron waves to the poindexter, as if to say, “Don’t worry about me sleeping with your wife while you’re at work.”
The poindexter waves back, not the least concerned with Aaron’s rugged masculinity impressing his wife while he’s gone.
Aaron makes eye contact with the smoking-hot wife, and gives her a head nod. He’s just here to clean the yard and such.
The smoking-hot wife is impressed. But who wouldn’t be?
A sweaty Aaron finds refuge in his fortress of solitude: the tool shed, where he has stripped down to his A-shirt, as these old-fashioned sleeveless numbers are called, and is reverse-seated in a chair—because that’s how a badass sits in a chair. He also begins to sing about his unrequited love.
Aaron cuts a little lumber with a circular saw. Nothing to see here, or is there?
Now it’s time to water the trees.
The smoking-hot wife is joined by her smoking-hot friends (who are also unemployed) for a day of relaxing under the pergola and sipping beverages. Perhaps the sweaty yard boy (or is it yard man?) would like a sip.
Indeed, Aaron is thirsty, and the beverage is most appreciated. If only there was a way he could more appropriately thank her. But remember, Aaron waved at the poindexter earlier, and his wave is much like his handshake—a bond that won’t be broken.
Aaron does a little bit of stalking from his fortress of solitude.
No harm, no foul.
Unnecessary close-up of the smoking-hot wife drinking from a straw. This was the ’90s, and straws were considered very sexy.
Back in the yard, Aaron displays more of his rugged masculinity by swinging a pickaxe. He’s sweaty…very sweaty.
Smoking-hot wife is also sweaty. It’s time for a dip in the pool. Is Aaron invited?
Find out in 11 seconds.
He is not invited.
Back in the tool shed, a glistening Aaron now stands from his seated position and wails.
We all feel his pain.
To everyone’s disappointment, poindexter returns home from work to see that his wife has not been ravaged by Aaron.
It’s time for Aaron to go home—just a man, his mustache and his muscles. Surely he finds solace in a hard day’s work.
Oh, he does, he surely does.
