Vols
pull away from Kentucky to send seniors out with win
By:
Matt Laws (matt.laws@averyjournal.com)
To
say it was an unusual senior day in Neyland Stadium on Saturday is at the very
least an understatement. However, the Tennessee Volunteers buckled down and
made the best of it.
Under
the direction of interim head coach Jim Chaney, the Vols scored 17 points in
the second half to take a 37-17 victory over Kentucky in the regular season
finale on Saturday. Chaney was coaching after Derek Dooley was let go following
Tennessee’s disappointing loss to Vanderbilt.
"I couldn't have been happier with the
game finished for the senior class,” Chaney said. “They were very good with me
all week, the 13 kids who were playing their final game. It was emotional for
them on Friday night as we let them speak to the team. And I couldn't be more
pleased when they came out today, and the team gathered around one another to
get a victory for Tennessee and for the senior class. I'm pretty pleased that
that happened.”
For Chaney and the team, it was a great
result at the end of a strange week on Rocky Top.
"This week went pretty smoothly,”
Chaney said. “At the beginning of the week, it was a little rugged. No question
dealing with change is difficult, but as the week progressed, by Friday, I
thought we were close to being ready to go play a football game. How they'll
react in an environment of an SEC ballgame was what I was unsure about, but I
felt when we got the ball and scored, I felt pretty comfortable when the game
started.”
In
the opening minutes of the game, it didn’t take long for the Tennessee offense
to strike. Junior Tyler Bray found senior Zach Rogers for a 21-yard touchdown
strike, but the Wildcats answered on their next possession.
AJ
Johnson answered for the Vols on their following possession from a yard out to
put Tennessee up 14-7 midway through the first.
In
the second quarter, Bray hit Justin Hunter for a 42-yard touchdown to extend
the Tennessee lead, but the extra point was blocked. Kentucky closed the gap
when Jonathon George broke free for a 42-yard touchdown run, and the Wildcats
saw a late drive stall in the first half as the Vols held a 20-14 lead at the
break.
Kentucky
opened the second half with an impressive 15 play drive as they had to settle
for a 29-yard field goal with just over seven minutes left in the frame. Mychal
Rivera was on the receiving end of Bray’s third touchdown pass of the day as he
scored on a 29-yard pass, and then Cordarrelle Patterson caught a 21-yard
touchdown pass to push the Tennessee lead to 34-17 lead at the end of the
third.
Michael
Palardy capped off the scoring in the fourth quarter with a 33-yard field goal.
Bray
finished the day 20-of-34 for 293 yards and four touchdowns, while Marlin Lane
ran for 75 yards on 10 carries. Senior Rivera ended his final game with five
catches on 64 yards, while Patterson ended the day with 88 yards on four
catches and 158 total all-purpose yards.
For
Chaney, it was great feeling getting the 13 seniors a victory a win in their
final game in the orange and white
"It means everything,” Chaney said.
“That was the goal at the beginning of the week- how do you refocus a team to
get them go out in a victorious manner? We talked about it throughout the week.
They decided to make it happen and they did it.”
