Origins of Wide Receiver U

#26
#26
The era of Willie Gault is when it became prominate as everyone says but it actually began with Larry Seivers and some big plays by Stanley Morgan. Tennessee started having some big plays (deep balls) against lesser opponents such as Duke, Vanderbilt etc so the long pass plays started standing out. Then when Gault arrived his speed improved the deep pass. Alvin Harper cemented Tennessee as wide reciever U.
Posted via VolNation Mobile
 
#27
#27
knoxvols1 said:
The era of Willie Gault is when it became prominate as everyone says but it actually began with Larry Seivers and some big plays by Stanley Morgan. Tennessee started having some big plays (deep balls) against lesser opponents such as Duke, Vanderbilt etc so the long pass plays started standing out. Then when Gault arrived his speed improved the deep pass. Alvin Harper cemented Tennessee as wide reciever U.Posted via VolNation Mobile
Click to expand...

Actually it was Tim McGee, who was a two time AA. His last season was 1985. Harper's first season was 1987.
 
#29
#29
esarmstrong said:
Larry Seivers made the catch you refer to. I was there at the ripe old age of 13.

Holloway had two Clemson players draped on him for the tackle and he threw up a prayer that was answered with Seivers' catch. There is a famous picture of this play with Seivers holding the ball up after the catch and Gus Manning is running over to him with a cigar in his mouth and he's holding a briefcase.

The play was a two-point conversion that gave UT a 29-28 victory. 1974
Click to expand...

My recollection is that Clemson had lead 21-0 at one point in the game and Vols pulled it out. Then 2 years later again in Knoxville they held off Clemson's attempt at a 2 point conversion to win 21-19 after leading 21-0. Two great games - unless you were a Tiger:birgits_giggle:
 
#30
#30
Also, as part of that come back in '74 there was a play where a Vol player came running on the field waving his hand and a WR broke the huddle and sprinted to the side line like he was going off the field but stopped just a foot in bounds next to a bunch of other Vols on the side line. The Clemson DB's didn't pick him up and it was an easy pitch and catch for a TN TD. Anyone else recall that or was that another game?
 
#31
#31
I think it actuallY began in the mid-60's when Tennessee started throwing the ball to Mills (Johnny) and Flowers (Richmond). During 1966 our passing TD's tripled from the year before.

Then, in 1973 along came guys named Stanley Morgan, Larry Sievers, Reggie harper and Anthony Hancock and we were off and running, no make that passing. They were followed by Willie Gault, Clyde Duncan, Tim McGee, Thomas Woods, Carl Pickens and Joey Kent.

You all know the ones that followed them...the list just keeps on keeping on? GBO!
mg
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#32
#32
I think it actuallY began in the mid-60's when Tennessee started throwing the ball to Mills (Johnny) and Flowers (Richmond). During 1966 our passing TD's tripled from the year before.

Then, in 1973 along came guys named Stanley Morgan, Larry Sievers, Reggie harper and Anthony Hancock and we were off and running, no make that passing. They were followed by Willie Gault, Clyde Duncan, Tim McGee, Thomas Woods, Carl Pickens and Joey Kent.

You all know the ones that followed them...the list just keeps on keeping on? GBO!
mg
 
#33
#33
Hacksaw said:
Larry Sievers garnered a lot of attention as a 2-time consensus AA during the mid-'70s. Even though his expected NFL success never materialized, he was followed into the league by another great UT WR who played for a decade-and-a-half: Stanley Morgan.

The '80s saw a whole slew of UT WRs who were taken in the first round of the NFL draft: Anthony Hancock, Willie Gault, Clyde Duncan, Tim McGee, Anthony Miller and Alvin Harper (in '91). During this time, other UT WRs (who were NOT 1st rounders) went on to significant NFL careers that solidified the image of UT as WR U. These included guys who weren't considered to be greats, like Sam Graddy, and guys who exceeded expectations, like Carl Pickens. The NFL seemed to be full of Vol WRs.

By the time guys like Peerless Price, Robert Meachem and Donte Stallworth came along, other schools were making a case to be considered WR U. But in the '80s, UT was pretty much undisputed. And we can still make a pretty good argument today.

And that's even if you exclude TEs, which would leave out David Martin and Jason Witten.
Click to expand...

Hey Jack, is that really you? :superman:
 
#34
#34
Negateer said:
To me, I first heard it during Anthony Hancock's years, probably Gault's first season.

dang, to have him fielding kicks again...
Click to expand...

This is pretty much on point...Anthony Hancock and Stanley Morgan are some of the earlier WR's I remember (been going to to games since I was a kid in the mid 70's)...Joey Clinkscales was another...Willie Gault, Tim Mcgee (sp), Alvin Harper, MArcus Nash, Etc...etc...etc...point is we got the name Wide Receiver U because for a while every WR it seemed like we put out ...went on to do HUGE numbers in the NFL...
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#35
#35
General_Neyland said:
This is pretty much on point...Anthony Hancock and Stanley Morgan are some of the earlier WR's I remember (been going to to games since I was a kid in the mid 70's)...Joey Clinkscales was another...Willie Gault, Tim Mcgee (sp), Alvin Harper, MArcus Nash, Etc...etc...etc...point is we got the name Wide Receiver U because for a while every WR it seemed like we put out ...went on to do HUGE numbers in the NFL...
Click to expand...

Actually, when we fell out of the WRU moniker, was when big number college guys like Joey Kent and Marcus Nash failed miserably in the NFL. It goes to show you how good Manning makes everyone else around him. Peerless Price is the only WR that played with Manning at UT that has had any success, while be it very little, in the NFL. Gault didn't have huge numbers in the NFL either. Neither did Alvin Harper. Far and away, the best NFL careers for UT WRs belong to Stanley Morgan, Tim McGee, Anthony Miller and Carl Pickens. Meachem has put some some pretty decent numbers, but nothing like his potential suggests. Nash, Kent and Duncan were all NFL busts. Harper had a few nice seasons as a #2 receiver but when he got the big contract in Tampa, he failed to deliver. Same with Peerless coming from Buffalo to Atlanta
 
#36
#36
Being a WR in an offense QB'd by Michael Vick in Atlanta didn't do Peerless Price any favors either.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#39
#39
1974Vol said:
My recollection is that Clemson had lead 21-0 at one point in the game and Vols pulled it out. Then 2 years later again in Knoxville they held off Clemson's attempt at a 2 point conversion to win 21-19 after leading 21-0. Two great games - unless you were a Tiger:birgits_giggle:
Click to expand...

Incorrect. The game was actually a "nip and tuck" affair the whole afternoon and was not decided until Seivers' famous catch. UT had to go for two twice in the fourth quarter to win the game, thanks to a missed point-after try (No overtime in those days, kiddies). Bill Battle could have played for the tie with a little over a minute left in the game, but he played for the win and was successful.

Check the link below for a much more detailed telling of the story of the game and the game linescore and stats.

College Football Belt - 1974 Clemson at Tennessee

And this link has a picture of Holloway right before he lauched his famous pass to Seivers.

The Artful Dodger Who Wore Number Seven « Vols in the Fall
 
Last edited:
#40
#40
1974Vol said:
Also, as part of that come back in '74 there was a play where a Vol player came running on the field waving his hand and a WR broke the huddle and sprinted to the side line like he was going off the field but stopped just a foot in bounds next to a bunch of other Vols on the side line. The Clemson DB's didn't pick him up and it was an easy pitch and catch for a TN TD. Anyone else recall that or was that another game?
Click to expand...

Coworker is a Clemson season ticket holder and he told me about this play. He is still sore about it. May have been the only time he was in Neyland. He still claims they were robbed.
 
#41
#41
What do yall think, do we miss Arnett at all this season? IMO we do only in the aspect of him having a years experience under his belt opposed to CP that hasnt played in a big SEC game yet. Im not saying Arnett is more talented than some of our incoming receivers but, just wondering if yall thought we might miss having his experience in pressure moments.
 
#42
#42
Treasure Hunter09 said:
What do yall think, do we miss Arnett at all this season? IMO we do only in the aspect of him having a years experience under his belt opposed to CP that hasnt played in a big SEC game yet. Im not saying Arnett is more talented than some of our incoming receivers but, just wondering if yall thought we might miss having his experience in pressure moments.
Click to expand...

Who???

i thought i would go ahead an get that one in.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 people
#43
#43
Hacksaw said:
Larry Sievers garnered a lot of attention as a 2-time consensus AA during the mid-'70s. Even though his expected NFL success never materialized, he was followed into the league by another great UT WR who played for a decade-and-a-half: Stanley Morgan.

The '80s saw a whole slew of UT WRs who were taken in the first round of the NFL draft: Anthony Hancock, Willie Gault, Clyde Duncan, Tim McGee, Anthony Miller and Alvin Harper (in '91). During this time, other UT WRs (who were NOT 1st rounders) went on to significant NFL careers that solidified the image of UT as WR U. These included guys who weren't considered to be greats, like Sam Graddy, and guys who exceeded expectations, like Carl Pickens. The NFL seemed to be full of Vol WRs.

By the time guys like Peerless Price, Robert Meachem and Donte Stallworth came along, other schools were making a case to be considered WR U. But in the '80s, UT was pretty much undisputed. And we can still make a pretty good argument today.

And that's even if you exclude TEs, which would leave out David Martin and Jason Witten.
Click to expand...

This is exactly the way I remember it starting when i was at UT in the early to mid 70s. Larry Seivers was a tall thin receiver wih vacuum cleaner hands and a tear-away jersey. Just throw long and hgh and he would go up and take it away from the defender. Stanley Morgan was a blazer from Easley, SC and was always a runaway threat on a run, pass, or kick return. A bit earlier than either of them was track star Richmond Flowers., son of the Alabama Attorney General that played wingback for UT in the late 60s and went on to an NFL career.
 
#47
#47
Can't even imagine what Peyton might have done with 3 starting WRs like Bray will have lining up this year (Hunter, Rodgers, Patterson).

Pig Howard may surprise some too. :loco:

Hard to believe that Peerless was really the only one of Peyton's college WRs that had success in NFL.

Kendrick Jones
Joey Kent
Marcus Nash
Greg Kyler
Scott Pfeiffer
Dustin Moore
Andy McCullough
Maurice Staley
Peerless Price
Jeremaine Copeland
 
#48
#48
TXVol_44 said:
Did anyone mention Richmond Flowers? He was really the first big-time WR name in Tennessee football.

But "Wide Receiver U" was coined during the Willie Gault, Mike Miller, Tim McGee, and Joey Clinkscales era of the early 80's when track and football virtually shared talent.
Click to expand...

A few more - many already mentioned above

Anthony Hancock

Willie Gault
Sam Graddy
Clyde Duncan

Tim McGee was awesome

Don't forget Eric Swanson...jk...he was a role player on the 85 SugarVols team.

TD Woods & Terence Cleveland

Anthony Miller

Anthony Morgan was another really good WR that hardly ever gets mentioned...I think he played for the Packers for several years.

Pickens was an unbelievable talent. Alvin Harper was great.

In early 90s Craig Faulkner was really solid. Troy Fleming pretty good too.
 
#49
#49
Just to think about the receivers on the roster this year makes me giddy..

Justin Hunter
Darick Rogers
Cordarrelle Patterson
Vincent Dallas
Jason Croom
Pig Howard
Drae Bowles
even Zach Rogers will provide senior leadership.. who am I missing?

Edit: just for fun lets even throw Naz Oliver in the mix
 
Last edited:
#50
#50
Volman09 said:
Just to think about the receivers on the roster this year makes me giddy..

Justin Hunter
Darick Rogers
Cordarrelle Patterson
Vincent Dallas
Jason Croom
Pig Howard
Drae Bowles
even Zach Rogers will provide senior leadership.. who am I missing?
Click to expand...

"Wait till next year."

...2012 is the year
 
New posts
You must log in or register to reply here.
Advertisement



Back
Top