VOLS DOWN APSU 45-0 TO OPEN BUTCH JONES ERA
KNOXVILLE - The football
team opened up the Butch Jones era Saturday with the program's 800th
win, trouncing Austin Peay State University, 45-0 in front of an
opening night crowd of 97,169 at Neyland Stadium. "First
off, I'm proud of our program for accomplishing a milestone with our
800th program victory," said Jones. "There are not many programs in the
country that can say that, and it's a tribute to all the great players
who have come before us and have laid this tradition, this passion. So
congratulations to them." From the start, the Vols hit the
ground running - literally. Senior running back Rajion Neal carried the
ball for 141 yards on 16 carries and one score while junior Marlin Lane
ground out 38 yards rushing on six carries and two touchdowns. Both
exited the game after the first half. Neal's 47-yard run in the beginning of the first quarter broke the scoreless tie and ignited the Volunteer attack. From
there the Vols' offense cruised scoring five more touchdowns in the
first half. Three Justin Worley passes resulted in points as the junior
quarterback connected with wide receivers Devrin Young and Alton Howard
and tight end Brendon Downs. Worley, who played only the
first half as well, finished 11 for 14 with 104 yards passing and the
three touchdowns, keeping the Vols from having to punt in the first
half. Just as impressive as the offense was Jones' defense
which only allowed 211 total yards and created two turnovers, helping
lead to the shut out. It was the first time in 84 games
that Austin Peay had been held scoreless. The last time they failed to
score in a game was on Sept. 24, 2005 when they lost to Drake
University 54-0. Defensive lineman Daniel Hood's early
tipped pass and interception set up a Lane 14-yard touchdown run
putting Volunteers up 14-0 early. The first team defense
would allow only 99 first half yards, shutting out the visiting
Governors in the half in route to a 42-0 halftime blow out. The
third quarter saw the removal of many Volunteer first team players and
veterans and with them the threatening offense of the first half. Nathan
Peterman replaced Worley at quarterback in the second half and a
Michael Palardy 37-yard field goal proved to be the only score. Consequently,
several Vol newcomers made their collegiate debuts including receivers
Josh Smith, Marquez North, Paul Harris and Johnathon Johnson who all
contributed catches to the young receiving corps. Freshmen
Malik Foreman's interception early in the fourth quarter also helped to
stop an Austin Peay drive that had reached the Volunteer red zone. Leading
the way for Austin Peay was junior quarterback Andrew Spivey who passed
for 94 yards and completed 11 of his 22 attempts. The
Governors' Darryl Clack had 3 catches for 80 yards, leading the team in
receiving while running back Tim Phillips accounted for 38 yards
rushing on 8 carries. Part of the success for the Volunteers was a result of their composure. Jones
has stressed the importance of playing fundamentally sound football and
it showed Saturday as the Vols finished the game without a penalty.
"The big thing is that I wanted a clean game," said Jones. "I didn't
want to have 10 men on the field and have to call unnecessary timeouts.
I thought our special teams did a great job in terms of getting the
right people on the field." The last time Tennessee
committed no penalties was on Dec. 1, 2007 against Louisiana State
University in the SEC Championship game.
|