American college football season
The 2021 Tennessee Volunteers football team represented the University of Tennessee in the 2021 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 coach Josh Heupel .
Recruiting class [ edit ] Ranking Position Name Home State ★★★★ OT Addison Nichols Georgia ★★★★ QB Tayven Jackson Indiana ★★★★ WR Cameron Miller Tennessee ★★★ EDGE Joshua Josephs Georgia ★★★ TE Brody Foley Ohio ★★★ WR Marquarius (Squirrel) White Alabama ★★★ WR Chas Nimrod Arkansas ★★★ RB Dylan Sampson Louisiana ★★★ OG Mo Clipper Jr. Georgia ★★★ OT Brian Grant Florida ★★★ OG Masai Reddick Michigan ★★★ DT Jordan Phillips Florida ★★★ LB Elijah Herring Tennessee ★★★ LB Kalib Perry Kentucky
Coaching staff [ edit ]
Schedule [ edit ] Date Time Opponent Site TV Result Attendance 8:00 p.m. Bowling Green * SECN W 38–6 84,314 September 11 Noon Pittsburgh * Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN ESPN L 34–41 82,203 September 18 Noon Tennessee Tech * Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN ESPN+ /SECN+ W 56–0 80,053 September 25 7:00 p.m. at No. 11 Florida ESPN L 14–38 88,478 October 2 Noon at Missouri SECN W 62–24 45,655 October 9 Noon South Carolina Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry ) ESPN2 W 45–20 89,437 October 16 7:30 p.m. No. 13 Ole Miss Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry ) SECN L 26–31 102,455 October 23 7:00 p.m. at No. 4 Alabama ESPN L 24–52 100,077 November 6 7:00 p.m. at No. 18 Kentucky ESPN2 W 45–42 61,690 November 13 3:30 p.m. No. 1 Georgia Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry ) CBS L 17–41 100,074 November 20 7:30 p.m. South Alabama * Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN ESPNU W 60–14 75,203 November 27 3:45 p.m. Vanderbilt Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry ) SECN W 45–21 77,349 3:00 p.m. vs. Purdue * ESPN L 45–48OT 69,489
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Game summaries [ edit ] Bowling Green [ edit ] Bowling Green at Tennessee
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Bowling Green 0 6 0 0 6 Tennessee 14 0 14 10 38
at Neyland Stadium , Knoxville, TN
Date : September 2Game time : 8:00 p.m.Game weather : Sunny, 77 °F (25 °C)Game attendance : 84,314Referee : Steve MarloweTV announcers (SECN ) : Tom Hart (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (color) and Cole Cubelic (sidelines)
Pittsburgh [ edit ] Pittsburgh at Tennessee
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Pittsburgh 0 27 7 7 41 Tennessee 10 10 7 7 34
at Neyland Stadium , Knoxville, TN
Date : September 11Game time : NoonGame weather : Sunny, 71 °F (22 °C)Game attendance : 82,203Referee : Stuart MullinsTV announcers (ESPN ) : Dave Pasch (play-by-play), Dusty Dvoracek (color) and Tom Luginbill (sidelines)
Tennessee Tech [ edit ] Tennessee Tech at Tennessee
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Tennessee Tech 0 0 0 0 0 Tennessee 14 14 21 7 56
at Neyland Stadium , Knoxville, TN
Date : September 18Game time : NoonGame weather : Sunny, 75 °F (24 °C)Game attendance : 80,053Referee : Kyle OlsonTV announcers (SECN +/ESPN +) : Kevin Brown (play-by-play), Hutson Mason (color) and Abby Labar (sidelines)
At No. 11 Florida [ edit ] Tennessee at No. 11 Florida
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Tennessee 7 7 0 0 14 No. 11 Florida 10 7 14 7 38
at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium , Gainesville, FL
Date : September 25Game time : 7:00 p.m.Game weather : Cloudy, 80 °F (27 °C)Game attendance : 88,478Referee : Matt LoefflerTV announcers (ESPN ) : Joe Tessitore (play-by-play), Greg McElroy (color), and Katie George (sidelines)
At Missouri [ edit ] Tennessee at Missouri
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Tennessee 28 17 10 7 62 Missouri 3 7 7 7 24
at Faurot Field , Columbia, MO
Date : October 2Game time : NoonGame weather : Rain, 72 °F (22 °C)Game attendance : 45,655Referee : David SmithTV announcers (SECN ) : Dave Neal (play-by-play), Deuce McAllister (color), and Andraya Carter (sidelines)
Vs. South Carolina [ edit ] South Carolina at Tennessee
Period 1 2 3 4 Total South Carolina 0 7 7 6 20 Tennessee 28 10 0 7 45
at Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, Tennessee
Date : Saturday, October 9, 2021Game time : 12:00 p.m.. EST Game weather : Sunny • Temperature – 70°FGame attendance : 89,437Referee : James CarterTV announcers (ESPN2 ) : Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Mike Golic Jr. (color) and Taylor McGregor (sideline)Box Score
Game information First quarter (9:18) TENN – Jalin Hyatt 3-yard pass from Hendon Hooker (Chase McGrath Kick). Tennessee 7–0. Drive: 14 plays, 66 yards, 4:29. (6:46) TENN – JaVonta Payton 39-yard pass from Hendon Hooker (Chase McGrath Kick). Tennessee 14–0. Drive: 3 plays, 57 yards, 0:35. (0:58) TENN – Hendon Hooker 11-yard run (Chase McGrath Kick). Tennessee 21–0. Drive: 5 plays, 80 yards, 1:18. (0:12) TENN – Velus Jones Jr. 21-yard pass from Hendon Hooker (Chase McGrath Kick). Tennessee 28–0. Drive: 3 plays, 24 yards, 0:33. Second quarter (5:40) TENN – Tiyon Evans 45-yard run (Chase McGrath Kick). Tennessee 35–0. Drive: 5 plays, 76 yards, 1:43. (2:04) SC – Kevin Harris 6-yard run (Parker White Kick). Tennessee 35–7. Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 3:36. (0:00) TENN – Chase McGrath 25-yard field goal. Tennessee 38–7. Drive: 11 plays, 64 yards, 2:04. Third quarter (7:15) SC – Payton Mangrum 44-yard pass from Kai Kroeger (Parker White Kick). Tennessee 38–14. Drive: 7 plays, 59 yards, 3:18. Fourth quarter (12:18) SC – Kevin Harris 1-yard run (2PT Pass Failed). Tennessee 38–20. Drive: 15 plays, 80 yards, 7:04. (4:45) TENN – Len'Neth Whitehead 2-yard run (Chase McGrath Kick). Tennessee 45–20. Drive: 6 plays, 41 yards, 3:06.
Statistics SC TENN First downs 22 24 Plays–yards 75–370 72–472 Rushes–yards 153 247 Passing yards 217 225 Passing: comp–att–int 21–34–1 17–23–0 Time of possession 33:55 26:05
Team Category Player Statistics SC Passing Luke Doty 19/31, 167 yards Rushing Kevin Harris 16 carries, 61 yards, 2 TD Receiving Payton Mangrum 1 reception, 44 yards, TD TENN Passing Hendon Hooker 17/23, 225 yards, 3 TD Rushing Tiyon Evans 16 carries, 119 yards, TD Receiving Velus Jones Jr. 6 receptions, 103 yards, TD
No. 13 Ole Miss [ edit ] No. 13 Ole Miss at Tennessee
Period 1 2 3 4 Total No. 13 Ole Miss 10 14 7 0 31 Tennessee 9 3 7 7 26
at Neyland Stadium , Knoxville, TN
Date : October 16Game time : 7:30 pmGame weather : Sunny, 59 °F (15 °C)Game attendance : 102,455Referee : Marc CurlesTV announcers (SECN ) : Tom Hart (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (color) and Cole Cubelic (sidelines)
The game was delayed for nearly 20 minutes in the 4th quarter as some Tennessee fans started to throw objects onto the field, including a golf ball that hit Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin in the leg. The eruption occurred after officials ruled that Tennessee tight end Jacob Warren was short on 4th-and-24 with just under a minute left to play.[3] On the Monday following the game, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey announced that Tennessee would be fined $250,000 due to the fans' actions.[4]
At No. 4 Alabama [ edit ] Tennessee at No. 4 Alabama
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Tennessee 14 0 3 7 24 No. 4 Alabama 7 14 3 28 52
at Bryant-Denny Stadium , Tuscaloosa, AL
Date : October 23Game time : 7:00 pmGame weather : Sunny, 72 °F (22 °C)Game attendance : 100,077Referee : Alex MooreTV announcers (ESPN ) : Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Greg McElroy (color), and Katie George (sidelines)
At No. 18 Kentucky [ edit ] Tennessee at No. 16 Kentucky
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Tennessee 14 10 14 7 45 No. 18 Kentucky 7 14 14 7 42
at Kroger Field , Lexington, KY
Date : November 6Game time : 7:00 pmGame weather : Sunny, 46 °F (8 °C)Game attendance : 61,690Referee : Steve MarloweTV announcers (ESPN2 ) : Beth Mowins (play-by-play), Kirk Morrison (color), and Dawn Davenport (sidelines)
No. 1 Georgia [ edit ] No. 1 Georgia at Tennessee
Period 1 2 3 4 Total No. 1 Georgia 7 17 3 14 41 Tennessee 10 0 0 7 17
at Neyland Stadium , Knoxville, TN
Date : November 13Game time : 3:30 p.m. EST Game weather : Sunny, 49 °F (9 °C)Game attendance : 100,074Referee : James CarterTV announcers (CBS ) : Brad Nessler (play-by-play), Gary Danielson (color) and Jamie Erdahl (sidelines)Pregame line : Georgia −19.5 • Odds to win : Georgia 88.1% • Game summary : ESPN
Game information First quarter (11:43) TENN – Velus Jones Jr. 9 Yd pass from Hendon Hooker (Chase McGrath Kick) (Tennessee 7–0 ) (9:11) UGA – James Cook 39 Yd Run (Jack Podlesny Kick) (Tied 7–7 ) (1:39) TENN – Chase McGrath 24 Yd Field Goal (Tennessee 10–7 ) Second quarter (9:42) UGA – Jack Podlesny 40 Yd Field Goal (Tied 10–10 ) (7:24) UGA – Stetson Bennett 9 Yd Run (Jack Podlesny Kick) (Georgia 17–10 ) (0:37) UGA – James Cook 23 Yd pass from Stetson Bennett (Jack Podlesny Kick) (Georgia 24–10 ) Third quarter (4:41) UGA – Jack Podlesny 26 Yd Field Goal (Georgia 27–10 ) Fourth quarter (13:14) UGA – James Cook 5 Yd Run (Jack Podlesny Kick) (Georgia 34–10 ) (7:03) UGA – Kenny McIntosh 5 Yd Run (Jack Podlesny Kick) (Georgia 41–10 ) (3:38) TENN – Cedric Tillman 12 Yd pass from Joe Milton (Chase McGrath Kick) (Georgia 41–17 )
Statistics UGA TENN First downs 26 22 Plays–yards 70–487 84–387 Rushes–yards 41–274 36–55 Passing yards 213 332 Passing: comp–att–int 17–29–0 30–48–1 Time of possession 32:40 27:20
Team Category Player Statistics UGA Passing Stetson Bennett 17/29, 213 yards, 1 TD Rushing James Cook 10 carries, 104 yards, 2 TD Receiving Adonai Mitchell 5 receptions, 65 yards TENN Passing Hendon Hooker 24/37, 244 yards, 1TD, 1 INT Rushing Jabari Small 12 carries, 49 yards Receiving Cedric Tillman 10 receptions, 200 yards, 1 TD
South Alabama [ edit ] South Alabama at Tennessee
Period 1 2 3 4 Total South Alabama 0 7 0 7 14 Tennessee 14 21 14 11 60
at Neyland Stadium , Knoxville, TN
Date : November 20Game time : 7:30 pmGame weather : Cloudy, 46 °F (8 °C)Game attendance : 75,203Referee : Jason AutreyTV announcers (ESPNU ) : Clay Matvick (play-by-play) and Rocky Boiman (color)
Vanderbilt [ edit ] Vanderbilt at Tennessee
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Vanderbilt 0 7 6 8 21 Tennessee 7 17 14 7 45
at Neyland Stadium , Knoxville, TN
Date : November 27Game time : 3:45 pmGame weather : Sunny, 46 °F (8 °C)Game attendance : 77,349Referee : David SmithTV announcers (SECN ) : Dave Neal (play-by-play), Deuce McAllister (color), and Andraya Carter (sidelines)
Players drafted into the NFL [ edit ] References [ edit ]
Venues Bowls & rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons National championship seasons in bold