Here is Tennessee head football coach Butch Jones after practice 19 in Knoxville
Video – Jashon Robertson praises “big dude” Trey Smith
Here is Tennessee offensive lineman Jashon Robertson after practice 19 in Knoxville
Video – Ethan Wolf: “The sky’s the limit for us on the offensive side of the ball”
Here is Tennessee tight end Ethan Wolf after practice 19 in Knoxville
Video – Vols LB Cortez McDowell on competition at WLB
Here is Tennessee linebacker Cortez McDowell after practice 19 in Knoxville
Video – Tennessee practice 19: Defensive Line
Here’s a look at the Tennessee defensive line at fall practice 19 in Knoxville
Video – Tennessee practice 19: Running Backs
Here’s a look at the Tennessee running backs at fall practice 19 in Knoxville
Vols and SEC Men’s Basketball Conference Schedule Announced
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The Southeastern Conference released the intraconference portion of the 2017-18 men’s basketball schedule Thursday, completing Tennessee’s 30-game, regular-season slate.
Tipoff times and TV network designations will be announced at a later date.
In addition to “permanent opponents” Kentucky, South Carolina and Vanderbilt, Tennessee also will face Georgia and Ole Miss both at home and on the road this season.
The nine SEC teams set to visit Thompson-Boling Arena are Auburn, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, LSU, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt.
Tennessee’s nine SEC road trips include games at Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Missouri, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Vanderbilt.
The SEC Tournament will be played west of the Mississippi River for the first time when the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri, hosts the event March 7-11.
Season tickets go on sale in early September, and single-game tickets will become available in October.
Every intraconference can be seen from anywhere in the nation. SEC?Network will televise 68 games, ESPN or ESPN2 will televise 32 contests, ESPNU?will show 20 and CBS Sports airs six. The SEC’s games on ESPN platforms are exclusively branded as the “SEC?on ESPN.”
All of the games included in the ESPN package (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and SEC Network) also will be available through WatchESPN, which is accessible on computers, smartphones, tablets and connected devices to fans who receive their video subscription from an affiliated provider. Each of the CBS Sports games will be available to stream live in more than 150 U.S. markets via the CBS All Access subscription service, with additional coverage on CBSSports.com and the CBS Sports app.
The SEC Network will televise the first three days of the SEC Tournament. The semifinals and championship game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN.
SEC SCHEDULE ITEMS OF NOTE
- For the second season in a row, Tennessee opens SEC play in December, taking on Arkansas on Dec. 30 in Fayetteville. Last year, the Vols opened with Texas A&M on Dec. 29, the earliest conference opener since a Dec. 16, 1989, contest vs. Ole Miss.
- Not including potential matchups in the Battle 4 Atlantis, UT will face nine teams that competed in the 2017 NCAA Tournament, including four Elite Eight teams and defending national champion North Carolina. The Volunteers are 12-17 all-time against schools who are the reigning national champions.
- On Jan. 17, UT will travel to Columbia, Missouri, to take on the Tigers, who are now led by former Vols head coach Cuonzo Martin. Tennessee is 6-3 all-time when facing a team led by a former UT head coach.
VOLS TO HOST CARSON-NEWMAN IN EXHIBITION
- The Vols will host Carson-Newman in their lone exhibition game on Nov. 2 at 7 p.m. in Thompson-Boling Arena.
- Chuck Benson is entering his eighth season as head coach of the Eagles. Benson was an assistant coach at Tennessee from 1993-94 and 2003-05.
- Last year, Benson won his second-most games as Carson-Newman’s head coach, as the Eagles went 19-11, posted a top-10 region ranking and a logged a sixth straight winning season.
- The Eagles return All-American senior guard Charles Clark, who is the reigning South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year. Clark averaged 21.9 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game during his junior campaign.
- Tennessee and Carson-Newman haven’t met in the regular season since a 15-game stretch from 1908-36, during which the Volunteers went 11-4. The two teams have since faced off in three exhibition games, with Tennessee winning all three. The most recent meeting was a 73-52 contest in Knoxville on Nov. 3, 2011.
-UT Athletics
Four Vols Named to Senior Bowl Watch List
MOBILE, Ala. — Tennessee seniors Todd Kelly Jr., Evan Berry, Trevor Daniel and Ethan Wolf were named to the 2018 Reese’s Senior Bowl Watch List on Thursday.
Offensive linemen were not included in this year’s watch list and will continue to be evaluated as the season progresses.
The 2018 Reese’s Senior Bowl week officially begins on Tuesday, Jan. 23, and concludes with the 69th game on Jan. 27 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama. The game will feature a live broadcast on NFL Network at 2:30 p.m. ET.
The Vols have a rich history of standout performances in the Senior Bowl with over 120 participants in the top collegiate all-star game since 1951, including Senior Bowl MVPs Steve DeLong (1965), Alvin Harper (1991), Charlie Garner (1994), Erik Ainge (2008) and Robert Ayers (2009).
Quarterback Joshua Dobbs and cornerback Cameron Sutton led the South Team to a 16-15 victory in the 2017 Senior Bowl and parlayed their performances into NFL careers a few months later after both being drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Kelly had a career year in 2016, posting a team-high 71 tackles (49 solo) in 12 games at safety. He also had one sack, 2.0 tackles for loss, two interceptions, one forced fumble and four passes defended. Kelly’s eight career interceptions are the most among all players on the current roster. He was named to the watch list for the 2017 Lott IMPACT Trophy and the Wuerffel Trophy. Kelly also earned a nomination to the 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team on July 10.
Berry’s nomination comes just a day after he was named to the Preseason Coaches All-SEC Team. The Georgia native earned Athlon Preseason All-America honors earlier this summer and was also a 2016 Coaches Second Team All-SEC Selection after averaging 32.9 yards on 14 kick returns, including a 100-yard return for a touchdown at South Carolina on Oct. 29. In 2016, he also tallied 12 tackles and one tackle for loss. As a sophomore in 2015, he ranked first in the NCAA with a 38.3-yard kickoff return average and was named a First Team All-American by Walter Camp, Sporting News and Sports Illustrated. For his career, Berry has returned 49 kicks for 1,677 yards, a UT-record 34.2-yard average and four touchdowns. His 34.2-yard career kickoff return average is the best mark of any current player in the NCAA, regardless of division. Berry is also likely to break Tennessee’s all-time record for kickoff return yards this year as he enters the season just 177 yards shy of Willie Gault’s program record of 1,854.
On top of being named to the Senior Bowl Watch List and his Preseason All-SEC accolades, Daniel is also on the preseason watch list for the 2017 Ray Guy Award, awarded annually to the nation’s top punter. In 2016, Daniel posted a 44.6-yard average with 28 of his 70 punts inside the 20, 29 fair catches and 21 punts of 50 or more yards. His 44.6-yard average ranked third among SEC punters and his 70-yard punt against South Carolina was the longest in the SEC in 2016. Daniel was a candidate for the Ray Guy Award in both 2015 and 2016. Daniel’s 45.1-yard career punting average ranks fourth among active NCAA punters, regardless of division.
Wolf is also member of the Mackey Award Watch List for the second consecutive season. He totaled 21 receptions for 239 yards and two touchdowns in 2016. Wolf had 23 receptions for 301 yards and two scores in 2015 and tallied 23 grabs for 212 yards as a true freshman in 2014. For his career, the 6-6, 258-pounder has 67 receptions for 752 yards and four touchdowns, while making 34 starts and appearing in 37 games. He ranks fifth in Tennessee history among tight ends with 752 receiving yards and is closing in on Jason Witten (797) and Luke Stocker (956).
The Big Orange begins the 2017 season in less than two weeks with a showdown against ACC foe Georgia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game on Labor Day (Sept. 4) at the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The game will feature an 8 p.m. ET broadcast on ESPN.
The Vols’ home opener is slated for Sept. 9 against Indiana State, with kickoff set for 4 p.m. Tickets for that contest are still available. Fans can purchase tickets on AllVols.com or by calling or visiting the Thompson-Boling Arena box office (1-800-332-VOLS).
-UT Athletics
Canaan Smith Hospitalized After Illness But “Feeling Much Better” Today
Canaan Smith was taken to the hospital yesterday (Aug. 23) in Pennsylvania after experiencing dehydration and stomach pain, but he is “feeling much better” today (Aug. 24), his 35th birthday.
Canaan posted a series of photos on Instagram, inducing a couple of pics of him on a Ambulance gurney, with the caption: “Where do I start? I missed bus call Tuesday night cause I came down with something fierce…lost all body fluids and felt like a knife was being twisted around in my stomach. 😷 Flew out the next morning to try and put on a show for PA. Here’s how it turned out…For the record, I will ALWAYS give you everything I’ve got. Thanks for the support, Pennsylvania. And thanks to the fine medics/nurses/doctors at State College for taking care of me. Waking up feeling much better on my birthday 🤠See ya tonight, Delaware.”
We’re glad Canaan is feeling better. What a way to spend your birthday.
Check out Canaan’s pics below.
Social Media Roundup: RaeLynn’s Ticket to Ride, Kacey Musgraves’ Puppy Love, Chris Janson’s Wow Factor & More
If you don’t have time to comb through social media all day, here’s what you’ve been missing over the last 24 hours or so in the country music world:
- RaeLynn falls a hair short.
- Chris Janson impresses Little Big Town.
- Mo Pitney rocks at skipping rocks.
- Kacey Musgraves misses her dog.
- Frankie Ballard loses a little bit off the top.
- Chip Esten returns to Whose Line Is It Anyway?
- Luke Bryan knows dogs love trucks.
- Dan + Shay visit their friend Macey.
- Brett Eldredge thanks fans for helping out the kids.
Last night in Nashville was dreamy town! Amazing! Thanks for helpin out the kids @StJude pic.twitter.com/TdPhRHK0Tp
— Brett Eldredge (@bretteldredge) August 24, 2017
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