Rocky Top Talk

Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK The first we’ve seen of Young in the first round. Mock draft season is officially in full swing, and a handful of Tennessee Volunteers have a shot to go in the first round. We’ve seen both Jalin Hyatt and Darnell Wright land in some first round projections, and now we’ve got another — edge rusher Byron Young. Young … [Read more...] about Byron Young lands in first round of Mel Kiper’s first mock draft

Reese Strickland-USA TODAY Sports He’ll face his mentor. The next chapter of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge will be written on Saturday, which means another premier matchup is up next for Tennessee. Rick Barnes will face his former team for the second consecutive season, this time in Knoxville. Tennessee went to Austin last year and took the loss, despite a frantic comeback … [Read more...] about Interim Texas head coach Rodney Terry previews trip to Knoxville

Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK Bilas breaks down Tennessee ahead of the Texas matchup. Outside of one slip-up against Kentucky — and more on that later — Tennessee is rolling. The Volunteers are strolling through the bottom dwellers in the SEC, beating conference foes by 30 points on the regular. This Tennessee defense is probably the best we’ve seen in … [Read more...] about Jay Bilas on Tennessee: ‘No weakness’ that would keep them from winning a national title

Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK He’s been quite the surprise to this point. Tobe Awaka, much like his former and current teammate Zakai Zeigler, came to Tennessee without much fanfare. Tennessee entered the mix quietly, thanks to some inside information from Zeigler, who played with Awaka in AAU ball. St. Peters, Bryant, Bowling Green, Marist and Manhattan … [Read more...] about Rick Barnes talks development of Tobe Awaka

Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports Every Vol who played more than two minutes scored at least four points Tennessee’s stifling defense and points from every Vol who played more than two minutes led to the 70-41 dismantling of first-year head coach Mike White’s Georgia Bulldogs. UT actually started the game off by scoring four points in the first three-ish minutes of the … [Read more...] about HOOPS RECAP: Stifling defense, spread-out scoring leads to 70-41 blowout win over UGA

Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK After a big payday, where does he slot in? An 11-2 season and an Orange Bowl win wasn’t even in the realm of possibilities 24 months ago when Josh Heupel was hired at Tennessee. And yet, that’s exactly what he did. Heupel was hired to win fast at Tennessee, a notion that Danny White tossed at us during his search back in … [Read more...] about Where Josh Heupel ranks among SEC Coaches in salary

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports The Volunteers are big favorites. No. 4 Tennessee is set to meet Georgia tonight in Thompson-Boling Arena. The Volunteers bounced back from a loss to Kentucky last week, getting back on track with road wins against Mississippi State and LSU. They’ll look to keep the momentum rolling tonight against an improved Georgia squad. The Bulldogs are … [Read more...] about Tennessee vs. Georgia: How to watch

Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK White is now the highest paid AD in the SEC. The University of Tennessee has announced a raise and extension for vice chancellor and director of athletics Danny White. It’s a new six-year deal for White, who will now make $2.2 million annually to guide the athletics department. White was hired at Tennessee two years ago, … [Read more...] about Danny White receives contract extension

Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images Deserved. Following an 11-2 season in year two at Tennessee, Josh Heupel has received a much-deserved raise. As a reward for his quick transformation in Knoxville, Heupel will now make $9 million per year as Tennessee’s head coach — a hefty raise from the $5 million he made last year (via VolQuest). Tennessee confirmed the news this … [Read more...] about Josh Heupel gets big raise, contract extension