University of Tennessee Athletics
Inside The T - A Season In A Blink
November 28, 2014 | Football
By Brian Rice
UTSports.com
Wasn't it just July 4th?
Ok, maybe the year hasn't flown by that quickly, but I think we can all agree that it is hard to believe that this football season is in its twilight.
That's the thing about college football. One second, you're sweating at an evening kickoff in September, the next you're bundled up for an afternoon game in late November. Though it feels like it passed in the blink of an eye, when you sit back and think about all that has happened, you start to wonder how all of that fit in to these 14 weeks.
When Tennessee takes the field Saturday to face Vanderbilt, it will do so with the chance to extend the season one more game with the bowl bid that has eluded the program since 2010. That the Volunteers are in this position is no surprise. How they got there is a different story.
Look at the starting lineup on opening night and the one that will face the Commodores Saturday. Justin Worley won the quarterback job in fall camp and solidified his hold on the job with early-season performances against Utah State, Arkansas State and Georgia. He accounted for five touchdowns against Chattanooga, three passing, two rushing, but was injured at Ole Miss a week later.
Joshua Dobbs built on the momentum of a solid performance against Alabama to lead a comeback in his first start of the season the next week at South Carolina. He followed up a 301-yard performance against the Gamecocks with 297 more in a 50-16 win over Kentucky.
Marlin Lane started the opener in the backfield next to Worley but was slowed by injuries all season. Freshman Jalen Hurd had high expectations placed on him thanks to his lofty rankings coming out of high school. Whether it was splitting time with Lane or leading the way as the starter as he has in every game since Florida, Hurd has lived up to the expectations and then some.
Hurd scored his first Tennessee TD on a reception in the opening game and got his first on the ground the next week against Arkansas State. He rushed for more than 100 yards against Georgia, South Carolina and Kentucky, the most 100-yard rushing games by a true freshman since Jamal Lewis' seven in 1997. While he likely will not catch Lewis' 1997 rushing total of 1,364, his 756 yards and counting represent the best debut season by a running back since that special season from Lewis.
On the offensive line, Jacob Gilliam tore an ACL in his first-career start in the season opener. But he's still in the starting lineup after a remarkable display of toughness to put off surgery and continue living his dream of playing for the Volunteers.
Aaron Medley stepped forward to win the kicking job as a freshman, and all he's done is lead the SEC in field goals with 18. He has the seventh-most field goals in a single season at UT, the second-best season by a freshman behind only Daniel Lincoln's 21 in 2007.
Butch Jones had to explain the "Third Down for What" concept to the crowd at the open practice in August, now it's part of the fabric of Neyland Stadium. The Pride of the Southland Band's pregame drumline "Circle of Life" has become the new normal for sending the team to the locker room during pregame. Fans packed the Vol Walk like in no other year, with crowds often exceeding what other programs draw for games.
All of those things have happened just since the season started. Yet, it all still feels like it happened in the blink of an eye. Team 118 now has one more chance to give us a postseason memory.
Don't blink, you might miss it.
Brian Rice is a writer for UTSports.com. Questions, comments and story suggestions are always welcome via Twitter at @briancrice.
