The Official Countdown To Tennessee Football 2026 (Sat. Sept 5th Furman) (204 Days)

[CAVPUT]

246 Days!
The 1965 Vols defense led by senior Frank Emanuel held their opponents to 98 points for the entire season. The Vols haven’t held their opponents to less points since then. In 8 of the 11 games the Vols held their foes to a touchdown or less. Emanuel was elected into the CF HOF in 2004.

View attachment 803125

Helluva player.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

234 Days!

September 2, 2006

Marshawn Lynch, DeSean Jackson, and No. 9 California opened the season in Knoxville. Erik Ainge tossed four touchdown passes, and Robert Meachem dominated with 182 receiving yards and two scores as the Vols earned a 35–18 victory.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

233 Days!

In his final home game as a Vol, Josh Dobbs delivered a performance to remember. He threw for 223 yards and three touchdowns, then added 190 rushing yards on just 10 carries with two more scores. John Kelly chipped in 101 rushing yards, while Alvin Kamara and Jauan Jennings each found the end zone twice. The Vols capped it all off with a dominant 63–37 win over Missouri.

 

[Volizona]

233 Days!

In his final home game as a Vol, Josh Dobbs delivered a performance to remember. He threw for 223 yards and three touchdowns, then added 190 rushing yards on just 10 carries with two more scores. John Kelly chipped in 101 rushing yards, while Alvin Kamara and Jauan Jennings each found the end zone twice. The Vols capped it all off with a dominant 63–37 win over Missouri.

Is Dobbs not the perfect match for Heupel’s system? Oh what could have been if the timing was just a little different.

 

[IndianaVol]

Is Dobbs not the perfect match for Heupel’s system? Oh what could have been if the timing was just a little different.

Dobbs was Hooker before Hooker. He would have put up BEAST numbers in this offense.
Doesn't hurt either that he has the mental tools and would have grasped the offense extremely fast.

 

[Volizona]

Dobbs was Hooker before Hooker. He would have put up BEAST numbers in this offense.
Doesn't hurt either that he has the mental tools and would have grasped the offense extremely fast.

Yes. He and Hooker have very similar skill sets. I think Dobbs was just a little bit more elusive running, but Hooker was a little bit more accurate throwing the ball.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

232 Days!
Robert Neyland, Phillip Fulmer, and Johnny Majors are the only three head coaches in Tennessee history to surpass 100 games at the helm. In order, Neyland ranks first with an official record of 173–31–12, followed by Fulmer at second with a record of 151–52–1, and Majors third with a record of 116–82–8.

 

[Volizona]

232 Days!
Robert Neyland, Phillip Fulmer, and Johnny Majors are the only three head coaches in Tennessee history to surpass 100 games at the helm. In order, Neyland ranks first with an official record of 173–31–12, followed by Fulmer at second with a record of 151–52–1, and Majors third with a record of 116–82–8.

If only Phil was given a sabbatical!!!

 

[NO SIR EEE]

231 Days!

The Vols will open the 2026 season against the Furman Paladins, marking their first meeting in 84 years. Tennessee last faced Furman on October 24, 1942, after an earlier matchup on September 20, 1941. The Vols hold a 2–0 advantage in the all-time series, highlighted by a 32–6 victory in 1941 and a 52–7 win in 1942.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

230 Days!

Tennessee will travel to Atlanta for its second game of the 2026 season, taking on former SEC foe Georgia Tech at Bobby Dodd Stadium. The Vols lead the all-time series with 25 wins, 17 losses, and 2 ties. The two programs last met in the 2017 season opener, when Tennessee edged the Yellow Jackets 42–41 in an overtime thriller at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

229 Days!

Tennessee will welcome the Texas Longhorns to Neyland Stadium for the 2026 SEC opener. The Vols are 1–2 all time against Texas, and the meeting will mark the first matchup between the two programs since January 1968.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

228 Days!

Tennessee owns a 2–0 all-time record against the newly crowned national champion Indiana Hoosiers. The Vols defeated Indiana 27–22 in Atlanta on January 2, 1987, and followed it up with a 23–22 victory on January 2, 2019, in Jacksonville.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

227 Days!

 

[NO SIR EEE]

226 Days!

Tennessee capped off its first SEC championship in 16 years with a dominant 35-7 win over Miami in the 1986 Sugar Bowl and one play from that game has become legendary among Vol fans.


The story centers on Jeff Powell, a walk-on who came to Tennessee as a track star and fought his way onto the football team. Going into the Sugar Bowl, the Vols were confident after a strong season but few outside Knoxville gave them a real chance against the Hurricanes.


In the third quarter, with Tennessee leading and in control, Powell took an off-tackle run and broke it for a 60-yard touchdown that basically sealed the game. Broadcaster John Ward famously called it: “Powell just comes roaring down the greensward of the Superdome…” — a line that has stuck with fans ever since.


That run wasn’t just a highlight, it symbolized the Vols’ season: overcoming doubts, maximizing opportunity, and finishing in emphatic style.

 

[Tin Man]

@NO SIR EEE is your Internet out?

Hope you’re safe in this winter storm.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

@NO SIR EEE is your Internet out?

Hope you’re safe in this winter storm.

It was a little rough, lost the internet, but did not lose power thankfully. I am back. Thank you for checking on me.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

225 Days!
Bill Battle glanced down the sideline and called for Curt Watson.


Tennessee had just been handed a lifeline late in the 1971 Liberty Bowl against Arkansas, and the Vols’ head man wanted the ball in the hands of his best player.


Call it a gift if you want, it sure felt that way in orange. Frank Broyles sure thought so too, and he let everyone know it. The Arkansas coach was furious after Jon Richardson had the ball stripped and the officials ruled it Tennessee’s recovery. Broyles barked all the way off the field and doubled down in the postgame presser.


But the call stood. And it gave Tennessee one last shot.


Two plays later, Watson made it count.


Banged up ribs and all, Watson took the pitch from Jim Maxwell, turned the corner, and flat out wanted it more. He outran three Razorbacks to the edge, made another miss near the sideline, and crossed the goal line with both arms in the air.


Seventeen yards. Tie game. Just like that.


What looked dead minutes earlier suddenly had a pulse and then George Hunt finished it off. One pressure packed extra point later, Tennessee walked out of Memphis Memorial Stadium with a 14–13 win.


One fumble. One burst. One kick.


Liberty Bowl legend.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

224 Days!
Back in the 1957 Gator Bowl, Tennessee pulled off a classic underdog win over Texas A&M in what turned out to be Bear Bryant’s final game as A&M’s head coach before moving on to Alabama. The game was a muddy, defensive slugfest in Jacksonville, and neither team could find much offense.


Vols tailback Bobby Gordon was a workhorse, driving Tennessee deep and setting up the only score of the game. With time winding down, the Vols called on kicker Sam Burklow, who had never attempted a field goal that season. Head coach Bowden Wyatt calmly told him, “It’s just like an extra point.” Burklow delivered the kick that split the uprights and Tennessee won 3-0.


It snapped the Vols’ bowl game skid and spoiled a big moment for A&M and Bryant, while giving UT a memorable postseason victory under Wyatt’s leadership.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

223 Days!
On November 25th, 1950 on a frigid day at Shields-Watkins Field, Tennessee and Kentucky played one of the toughest, nastiest games in early Vol history. The Vols beat Bear Bryant’s Wildcats 7-0, knocking Kentucky out of national title contention.


The field looked like a battlefield, players walked to the trainer with bruises, bloody noses, and battered bodies, but Tennessee stood tall.


Kentucky came in undefeated and ranked No. 3, led by star QB Vito “Babe” Parilli, but Tennessee’s fearless defense harassed him all day, forcing turnovers and shutting down the Wildcats’ attack.


In the end, a smash-mouth slugfest in the cold gave the Vols a signature win and dashed Kentucky’s championship dreams, a gritty classic that Vol fans still talk about.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

222 Days!

On Oct. 14, 1995, Tennessee finally snapped a nine-year skid vs. Alabama with a statement win in Birmingham. It all started on the very first play. Peyton Manning hit Joey Kent, who turned it into an 80-yard touchdown that set the tone for a 41–14 rout of the Crimson Tide. Legendary Vol broadcaster **John Ward’s iconic call — “Play No. 1!” — has become part of UT lore ever since. The win not only ended years of frustration but kicked off a dominant stretch in the rivalry, including seven straight wins and SEC titles.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

221 Days!
Sept. 25, 1954, when a then-little-known sophomore named Johnny Majors exploded into Tennessee lore with a defining moment against Mississippi State. With the Vols and Bulldogs battling in Memphis, Majors took the ball and ripped off an 81-yard touchdown run, dancing around defenders and turning a close game into a UT win. That burst didn’t just put points on the board — it marked the moment Majors became a fan favorite and a future legend in Knoxville. The play was so unforgettable that Mississippi State coach Darrell Royal famously said afterward, “That kid beat us today.”

 

[NO SIR EEE]

220 Days!

Tennessee’s 38-20 victory over top-ranked Auburn on Sept. 28, 1985. The Tigers came to Neyland with Heisman favorite Bo Jackson, but the Vols’ defense swarmed him all day and held him to just 80 rushing yards on 17 carries — way under his average at the time. Meanwhile, UT quarterback Tony Robinson exploded, throwing for 259 yards and four touchdowns and setting the tone early with a big scramble on the first drive. Tennessee jumped out to a huge lead and never looked back, stunning the nation and marking one of the biggest wins in program history.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

219 Days!
Joey Kent stands at the top of Tennessee football’s all-time receiving records. From 1993–1996, he piled up 2,814 career receiving yards, still the most in program history, while also setting school records with 183 receptions and 25 receiving touchdowns.


After his standout college career, Kent spent time in the NFL from 1997–2000 with the Titans, Colts, and Vikings. He was a member of the Tennessee Titans team that fell to the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXIV in Atlanta.


Today, Kent is the co-owner of That Legendary Play, a company that creates graphic designs celebrating iconic football plays for teams across the sport.

 

[NO SIR EEE]

218 Days!

Tyler Bray holds the Tennessee football single-game passing record after throwing for 530 yards against Troy in 2012. Bray completed 29 of 47 passes for 530 yards and five touchdowns, posting a QBR of 85.2. Justin Hunter caught three touchdown passes, while Cordarrelle Patterson and Rajion Neal each added one. Despite going undrafted in the 2013 NFL Draft, Bray spent eight seasons in the NFL from 2013–2021, primarily as a backup or practice-squad quarterback with the Chiefs, Bears, and 49ers.

 

[dieseldaddy]

Bama would definitely claim the title won by Zora “Clever” Clevenger and the pesky 1915 Tennessee Volunteers tackle football squad.

Figured auburn would do the same.