2018 Tennessee Volunteers football team

The 2018 Tennessee Volunteers football team represented the University of Tennessee in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Volunteers played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee and competed in the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by first-year head coach Jeremy Pruitt.[1] They finished the season 5–7, 2–6 in SEC play to finish in last place in the Eastern Division.

2018 Tennessee Volunteers football
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
DivisionEastern Division
2018 record5–7 (2–6 SEC)
Head coachJeremy Pruitt (1st season)
Offensive coordinatorTyson Helton (1st season)
Offensive schemePro-style
Defensive coordinatorKevin Sherrer (1st season)
Co-defensive coordinatorChris Rumph (1st season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumNeyland Stadium
(Capacity: 102,455)
2018 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
Team W L    W L 
East Division
No.Georgia x  7 1     11 3  
No. 12 Kentucky  5 3     10 3  
No.Florida  5 3     10 3  
South Carolina  4 4     7 6  
Missouri  4 4     8 5  
Vanderbilt  3 5     6 7  
Tennessee  2 6     5 7  
West Division
No. 2 Alabama x$^  8 0     14 1  
No. 16 Texas A&M  5 3     9 4  
No. 6 LSU  5 3     10 3  
Mississippi State  4 4     8 5  
Auburn  3 5     8 5  
Ole Miss  1 7     5 7  
Arkansas  0 8     2 10  
Championship: Alabama 35, Georgia 28
  • ^ College Football Playoff participant
  • $ Conference champion
  • x Division champion/co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

Previous season

The team finished the season 4–8, 0–8 in SEC play in last place in the Eastern Division and the SEC. They were also the first Tennessee team in program history to lose eight games in a season, as well as the first to not win an SEC game since becoming a charter member of the conference in 1932.[2] They were led by fifth-year head coach Butch Jones until his firing on November 12.[3] Brady Hoke was named the interim head coach for the remainder of the season.[4]

Preseason

2018 recruiting class

Award watch lists

Listed in the order that they were released

Award Player Position Year
Chuck Bednarik Award[5] Nigel Warrior S JR
Outland Trophy[6] Trey Smith OL SO
Wuerffel Trophy[7] Kyle Phillips DL SR
Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award[8] Keller Chryst QB GS

SEC media poll

The SEC media poll was released on July 20, 2018 with the Volunteers predicted to finish in sixth place in the East Division.

Media poll (East)
Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1Georgia1,977 (271)
2South Carolina1,535 (8)
3Florida1,441 (2)
4Missouri1,057
5Kentucky874 (1)
6Tennessee704 (1)
7Vanderbilt392

Preseason All-SEC teams

The Volunteers had one player selected to the preseason all-SEC teams.

Schedule

Tennessee announced its 2018 football schedule on September 19, 2017. The 2018 schedule consisted of 7 home games[9], 4 away, and 1 neutral site game in the regular season. The Volunteers hosted SEC foes Florida, Alabama, Kentucky, and Missouri, and traveled to Georgia, Auburn, South Carolina, and Vanderbilt.[10]

The Volunteers hosted three of its four non–conference games which were against ETSU from the Southern Conference, UTEP and Charlotte, both of whom competed in the Conference USA. They traveled to Charlotte, North Carolina, for the Belk Kickoff against West Virginia from the Big 12 Conference.

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 13:30 p.m.vs. No. 17 West Virginia*CBSL 14–4066,793
September 84:00 p.m.East Tennessee State*SECNW 59–396,464
September 1512:00 p.m.UTEP*
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
SECNW 24–087,074
September 227:00 p.m.Florida
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN (rivalry)
ESPNL 21–47100,027
September 293:30 p.m.at No. 2 GeorgiaCBSL 12–3892,246
October 1312:00 p.m.at No. 21 AuburnSECNW 30–2484,589
October 203:30 p.m.No. 1 Alabama
CBSL 21–5897,087
October 277:30 p.m.at South Carolina
SECNL 24–2780,614
November 34:00 p.m.Charlotte*
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
SECNW 14–386,753
November 103:30 p.m.No. 12 Kentucky
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN (rivalry)
SECNW 24–795,258
November 173:30 p.m.Missouri
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
CBSL 17–5088,224
November 244:00 p.m.at VanderbiltSECNL 13–3835,887
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time
Schedule Source:[11]

Personnel

Roster and staff

2018 Tennessee Volunteers football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos.#NameClass
WR 1 Marquez Callaway Jr
QB 2 Jarrett Guarantano  So
RB 3 Ty Chandler So
WR 5 Josh Palmer So
WR 7 Brandon Johnson Jr
WR 8 Latrell Williams  So
RB 9 Tim Jordan So
WR 10 Tyler Byrd Jr
WR 11 Jordan Murphy So
QB 12 JT Shrout So
WR 13 Richard Mize Jr. So
QB 14 Zac Jancek  Jr
WR 15 Jauan Jennings  Jr
QB 17 Will McBride So
RB 18 Princeton Fant  Fr
QB 19 Keller Chryst  Sr
WR 21 Jacquez Jones  Jr
RB 24 Trey Coleman So
WR 26 Jay Shoop  Fr
RB 28 James Christian  So
RB 29 Jeremiah Howard  So
RB 31 Madre London  Sr
RB 33 Jeremy Banks Fr
WR 34 Malik Elion  Sr
RB 35 Ramsey Hailey So
RB 36 Tanner Dobrucky  Fr
WR 38 Grant Frerking  Fr
WR 38 Brent McPherson Jr
RB 42 Chip Omer  So
TE/RB 48 Ja'Quain Blakely  So
OL 50 Joey Cave  So
OL 51 Drew Richmond  Jr
OL 56 Riley Locklear So
OL 57 Nathan Niehaus  So
OL 58 Brandon Kennedy   Jr
OL 60 Michael Raymond Jr
OL 66 Jarious Abercrombie Fr
OL 67 Joe Keeler  Jr
OL 68 Marcus Tatum  So
OL 69 Brian Garvey So
OL 70 Ryan Johnson  So
OL 71 Tanner Antonutti Fr
OL 72 Jahmir Johnson  So
OL 73 Trey Smith So
OL 74 K'Rojhn Calbert  Fr
OL 75 Jerome Carvin Fr
OL 76 Chance Hall  Jr
OL 77 Devante Brooks  So
TE 80 Eli Wolf  Jr
TE 81 Austin Pope  So
TE 82 Dominick Wood-Anderson Jr
WR 83 Cooper Melton So
TE 84 James Brown  Fr
WR 85 Cedric Tillman Fr
TE 86 Andrew Craig  Fr
TE 87 Jacob Warren Fr
TE 88 LaTrell Bumphus So
TE 89 Brandon Benedict  So
OL 99 Ollie Lane Fr
Defense
Pos.#NameClass
LB 1 Jonathan Kongbo  Sr
DL 2 Shy Tuttle Sr
DB 3 Marquill Osborne Jr
DL 5 Kyle Phillips Sr
DB 6 Alontae Taylor Fr
DB 7 Bryce Collier Jr
LB 7 Jordan Allen  So
DB 9 Garrett Johnson Jr
DB 10 Bryce Thompson Fr
LB 11 Austin Smith  Jr
DB 12 Zach Weatherly  So
LB 13 Deandre Johnson So
DB 14 Quart'e Sapp  Jr
DB 15 Shawn Shamburger Jr
LB 17 Dillion Bates  Sr
DB 18 Nigel Warrior Jr
LB 19 Darrell Taylor  Jr
DB 20 Cheyenne Labruzza  Fr
LB 21 Shanon Reid So
DB 22 Micah Abernathy Sr
LB 23 Will Ignont Jr
DB 24 Todd Kelly Jr.  Sr
DB 25 Trevon Flowers Fr
DB 26 Theo Jackson So
DB 27 Carlin Fils-Aime Jr
DB 28 Baylen Buchanan Jr
DB 29 Brandon Davis Fr
DB 31 D.J. Henderson  Sr
DB 33 MaLeik Gatewood  Jr
LB 34 Darrin Kirkland Jr  Jr
LB 35 Daniel Bituli Jr
DB 36 Terrell Bailey  Fr
DB 37 Sam Harvin Jr
LB 38 Solon Page III  Fr
LB 39 Nick Humphrey So
LB 40 J.J. Peterson Fr
DB 41 Kenneth George Jr. So
LB 42 Nyles Gaddy Fr
DB 43 Jake Powers So
LB 46 Joshua Warren  Fr
LB 47 Landon Knoll  Jr
LB 48 Matt Ballard  So
LB 50 Cole Hughes Jr
DB 51 Kingston Harris Fr
DL 52 Maurese Smith  Fr
DL 55 Gatkek Kueth  Fr
DL 56 Matthew Butler So
DL 59 John Mincey Fr
DL 64 Kurott Garland Fr
DB 79 Bryce Collier Jr
DL 93 Emmit Gooden Jr
DL 95 Kivon Bennett So
DL 96 Airin Spell Fr
DL 97 Paul Bain  Sr
DL 98 Alexis Johnson  Sr
Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
PK 30 Brent Cimaglia So
P 37 Paxton Brooks Fr
P 39 Grayson Pontius Jr
PK 41 Ryan Tice  Sr
PK 43 Laszlo Toser  Jr
LS 46 Riley Lovingood  Jr
P 47 Joe Doyle  Fr
LS 52 Elijah Medford  Sr
LS 59 Jake Yelich  So
PK 97 Jackson Morris So
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Tyson Helton (Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks) - 1st year
  • Kevin Sherrer (Defensive Coordinator/Inside Linebackers) - 1st year
  • Chris Rumph (Co-Defensive Coordinator/Outside Linebackers) - 1st year
  • Chris Weinke (Running Backs Coach) - 1st year
  • Charles Kelly (Special Teams Coordinator/Safeties) - 1st year
  • Terry Fair (Cornerbacks Coach) - 1st year
  • David Johnson (Wide Receivers Coach) - 1st year
  • Will Friend (Offensive Line Coach) - 1st year
  • Tracy Rocker (Defensive Line Coach) - 1st year
  • Brian Niedermeyer (Tight Ends Coach) - 1st year
  • Craig Fitzgerald (Director of Strength and Conditioning) - 1st year

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured
  • Redshirt

Roster

Current depth chart

Source:[12]

Game summaries

vs. West Virginia

Belk Kickoff Game
1 234Total
No. 17 West Virginia 10 3207 40
Tennessee 0 770 14
  • Location: Charlotte, North Carolina
  • Game start: 3:30 p.m.
  • Elapsed time: 4:00
  • Game attendance: 66,793
  • Game weather: Temperature: 89 °F (32 °C) • Wind: 4 mph (6.4 km/h) • Weather: Sunny
  • Referee: Gary Patterson
  • TV announcers (CBS): Brad Nessler (play-by-play), Gary Danielson (color), Jamie Erdahl (sidelines)
Overall record Last meeting Result
First Meeting

ETSU

1 234Total
ETSU 0 030 3
Tennessee 10 28714 59
  • Location: Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Game start: 4:00 p.m.
  • Elapsed time: 3:52
  • Game attendance: 96,464
  • Game weather: Temperature: 90 °F (32 °C) • Wind: 8 mph (13 km/h) • Weather: Partly cloudy
  • Referee: Matt Austin
  • TV announcers (SECN): Taylor Zarzour (play-by-play), Matt Stinchcomb (color), Kris Budden (sidelines)
Overall record Last meeting Result
First Meeting

UTEP

1 234Total
UTEP 0 000 0
Tennessee 3 777 24
  • Location: Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Game start: Noon
  • Elapsed time: 3:04
  • Game attendance: 87,074
  • Game weather: Temperature: 85 °F (29 °C) • Wind: 12 mph (19 km/h) • Weather: Partly cloudy
  • Referee: Steve Marlowe
  • TV announcers (SECN): Dave Neal (play-by-play), D. J. Shockley (color), Dawn Davenport (sidelines)
Overall record Last meeting Result
3–0 1990 Tennessee, 56–0

Florida

1 234Total
Florida 14 12714 47
Tennessee 0 3108 21
  • Location: Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Game start: 7:00 p.m.
  • Elapsed time: 3:26
  • Game attendance: 100,027
  • Game weather: Temperature: 85 °F (29 °C) • Wind: 3 mph (4.8 km/h) • Weather: Partly cloudy
  • Referee: James Carter
  • TV announcers (ESPN): Adam Amin (play-by-play), Rod Gilmore (color), Quint Kessenich (sidelines)
Overall record Last meeting Result
20–27 2017 Florida, 26–20

at Georgia

1 234Total
Tennessee 0 066 12
No. 2 Georgia 7 10714 38
  • Location: Athens, Georgia
  • Game start: 3:30 p.m.
  • Elapsed time: 3:10
  • Game attendance: 92,746
  • Game weather: Temperature: 85 °F (29 °C) • Wind: 3 mph (4.8 km/h) • Weather: Partly cloudy
  • Referee: John McDaid
  • TV announcers (CBS): Brad Nessler (play-by-play), Gary Danielson (color), Jamie Erdahl (sidelines)
Overall record Last meeting Result
23–22–2 2017 Georgia, 41–0

at Auburn

1 234Total
Tennessee 3 10143 30
No. 21 Auburn 10 707 24
  • Location: Auburn, Alabama
  • Game start: Noon
  • Elapsed time: 3:30
  • Game attendance: 84,589
  • Game weather: Temperature: 70 °F (21 °C) • Wind: 6 mph (9.7 km/h) • Weather: Sunny
  • Referee: Matt Austin
  • TV announcers (SECN): Dave Neal (play-by-play), D. J. Shockley (color), Dawn Davenport (sidelines)
Overall record Last meeting Result
21–28–3 2013 Auburn, 55–23

Alabama

Third Saturday in October
1 234Total
No. 1 Alabama 28 14160 58
Tennessee 0 1470 21
  • Location: Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Game start: 3:30 p.m.
  • Elapsed time: 3:19
  • Game attendance: 97,087
  • Game weather: Temperature: 64 °F (18 °C) • Wind: 10 mph (16 km/h) • Weather: Mostly cloudy
  • Referee: Matt Loeffler
  • TV announcers (CBS): Brad Nessler (play-by-play), Gary Danielson (color), Jamie Erdahl (sideline)
  • Sources:
Overall record Last meeting Result
38–54–7 2017 Alabama, 45–7

at South Carolina

1 234Total
Tennessee 7 7100 24
South Carolina 3 6153 27
  • Location: Columbia, South Carolina
  • Sources:
  
Overall record Last meeting Result
25–9–2 2017 South Carolina, 15–9

Charlotte

1 234Total
Charlotte 0 300 3
Tennessee 14 000 14
  • Location: Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Game start: 4:00 p.m.
  • Elapsed time: 3:00
  • Game attendance: 86,753
  • Game weather: Temperature: 58 °F (14 °C) • Wind: 5 mph (8.0 km/h) • Weather: Sunny
  • Referee: Steve Marlowe
  • TV announcers (SECN Alt): Mike Morgan (play-by-play), Barrett Jones (color), Taylor Davis (sidelines)
Overall record Last meeting Result
First Meeting

Kentucky

1 234Total
No. 12 Kentucky 0 070 7
Tennessee 3 1470 24
  • Location: Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Game start: 3:30 pm
  • Elapsed time: 3:12
  • Game attendance: 95,258
  • Game weather: Temperature: 45 °F (7 °C) • Wind: 6 mph (9.7 km/h) • Weather: Sunny
  • Referee: Matt Loeffler
  • TV announcers (SECN): John Congemi (play-by-play), Taylor Zarzour (color), Kris Budden (sidelines)
Overall record Last meeting Result
79–25–9 2017 Kentucky, 29–26

Missouri

1 234Total
Missouri 6 201410 50
Tennessee 0 1070 17
  • Location: Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Sources:
  
Overall record Last meeting Result
2–4 2017 Missouri, 50–17

at Vanderbilt

1 234Total
Tennessee 0 076 13
Vanderbilt 7 10021 38
  • Location: Nashville, Tennessee
  • Game weather: Temperature: 63 °F (17 °C) • Wind: 8 mph (13 km/h) • Weather: Partly cloudy
  • Referee: Marc Curles
  • Sources:
  
Overall record Last meeting Result
75–32–5 2017 Vanderbilt, 42–24
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References

  1. https://www.si.com/college-football/2017/12/07/jeremy-pruitt-tennessee-coach-career-nick-saban
  2. Toppmeyer, Blake (November 26, 2017). "Vandy 42, Tennessee 24: Vols lose eight games for first time in program history". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  3. "Currie Announces Head Football Coach Transition". Retrieved November 12, 2017.
  4. "Sources: Tennessee fires coach Butch Jones". Retrieved November 12, 2017.
  5. "2018 Bednarik Award Watch List". July 16, 2018. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
  6. "2018 OUTLAND TROPHY WATCH LIST UNVEILED". July 24, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  7. "Wuerffel Trophy Unveils 2018 Watch List". July 26, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  8. "Watch List for 2018 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award ® Presented by A. O. Smith Announced". August 14, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  9. Cooper, J. A. (January 2, 2020). "Making orange green? A critical carbon footprinting of Tennessee football gameday tourism". Journal of Sport & Tourism. 24 (1): 31–51. doi:10.1080/14775085.2020.1726802. ISSN 1477-5085.
  10. "Tennessee Football Announces 2018 Schedule" (Press release). Birmingham, Alabama: Southeastern Conference. September 19, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  11. "2018 Tennessee Volunteers Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
  12. Terry Lambert, "Tennessee Releases First Depth Chart of 2018," Rocky Top Talk, August 27, 2018.
  13. "West Virginia vs. Tennessee - Game Summary". ESPN. September 1, 2018. Retrieved September 1, 2018.
  14. "ETSU vs. Tennessee - Game Summary". ESPN. September 8, 2018. Retrieved September 8, 2018.
  15. Adams, John (September 15, 2018). "UT Vols football shows 4-8 potential in victory over UTEP". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved September 15, 2018.
  16. Sallee, Barrett (September 22, 2018). "Florida vs. Tennessee score: Gators romp over Volunteers to give Dan Mullen first SEC win". CBS Sports. Retrieved September 23, 2018.
  17. Toppmeyer, Blake (September 29, 2018). "Georgia 38, Tennessee 12: 5 things we learned from UT Vols' 11th straight SEC loss". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  18. Adams, John (October 14, 2018). "Underdog UT Vols football plays like favorites vs Auburn in possibly season-changing win". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
  19. Adams, John (November 3, 2018). "On this UT Vols football homecoming, Tennessee fans who stayed home made wise choice". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  20. Toppmeyer, Blake (November 10, 2018). "Tennessee 24, Kentucky 7: Jarrett Guarantano, Vols defense fuel upset of Wildcats". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
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