TENNESSEE POSTGAME NOTES

Oct. 21, 2006

Noting Tennessee

Tennessee improved to 6-1 (2-1 SEC); Alabama fell to 5-2 (2-2 SEC).
The Vols entered the game ranked No. 7 in the Associated Press poll and No. 9 in the USA Today rankings; Alabama was unranked in both polls.
Tennessee returns to action Oct. 28 at South Carolina at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia. The Crimson Tide host Florida International.

Tennessee-Alabama Series

Alabama leads the all-time series vs. UT 44-38-7 dating to 1901.
The Vols are 20-20-1 in Knoxville against the Crimson Tide. Vols head coach Phillip Fulmer is 5-2 in Knoxville.
Today's contest marked the fourth meeting between UT head coach Phillip Fulmer and Alabama head coach Mike Shula.

Phillip Fulmer's Record

Tennessee head coach Phillip Fulmer improved his record to 134-38 (.779) in 15 seasons with the Vols.
Fulmer now owns a 11-3 record against Alabama, a 84-25 SEC mark and a 34-10 record vs. SEC Western Division teams.

Ainge sets career-high for attempts and completions

Ainge made his 18th career start for the Vols.
The Hillsboro, Ore., native completed 28 of 46 passes for 302 yards and three interceptions. The attempts and completions were both career-highs.
Ainge eclipsed the 4,000-yard passing mark in the third quarter. His 302 yards improved his career output to 4,148 yards.
Ainge now stands in sixth place on UT's career passing yardage list with 4,148. He passed Heath Shuler during the game.
Dating back to the fourth quarter against Marshall, Ainge's string of 73 consecutive passes without an interception was snapped in the first quarter when Simeon Castille picked off the junior's attempt intended for Lucas Taylor.

Foster punches in game-winning touchdown

Sophomore Arian Foster rushed 11 times for only 34 yards but his fourth-quarter touchdown put the Vols in front for the first time. Foster now is tied with Montario Hardesty for the team lead in rushing touchdowns with four.
Foster picked up his second run of over 20 yards this season with a 24-yard rush down the left sideline in the first quarter. The run was the longest of his 52 carries this season.

Smith and Meachem lead Vol receivers again

After setting career-bests with a prolific performance against Georgia, senior receiver Bret Smith set a new career-high with seven catches and 95 receiving yards tonight. Smith has caught 14 passes for 189 yards and one touchdown in the past two games.
Swain's first catch today -- a 16-yard gain from Erik Ainge on third down late in the first quarter -- was the 100th reception of his career. Swain is just the 14th Vol ever to log at least 100 career receptions.
Junior wideout Robert Meachem hauled in six passes for 87 yards. He now has 40 catches for 762 yards and six TDs this season.

Defense Denies

The Vols held Bama to only 61 rushing yards which is the lowest by an SEC opponent this season.
Alabama had only 211 yards of total offense which was also a low by an SEC opponent.
Tennessee only allowed 150 passing yards and while they could not grab any interceptions they did mange to breakup seven Alabama passes. Wade led the team with two PBUs.
Sophomore Jerod Mayo led the Vols and tied a career-high with 12 tackles. The Hampton, Va., native also had two TFL's and a sack on the final play of the game to clinch the win.
The Vols' had three sacks for the game, two came on Alabama's final drive as Tennessee prevented the Crimson Tide from getting into field goal position. Antonio Reynolds had his first sack since 2004 on the final drive.

Miscellaneous Notes

The Vols have outscored their opponents 68-13 in the fourth quarter in the past four games. In the last two games, Tennessee has overcome deficits entering the fourth quarter to win.
Jonathan Hefney's 40-yard punt return following Alabama's first possession of the second half was the longest for the Vols this year. Hefney, who also posted a 32-yard return in the first half, recorded the previous long this season of eight yards against Air Force, a mark he shared with Antonio Wardlow.
James Wilhoit's conversion of a 47-yard attempt in the third quarter marked the ninth consecutive score in the series by way of the field goal. Neither team reached the end zone in the 6-3 Alabama win in 2005, and the last two scores in the 17-13 UT win in 2004 were 3-pointers. Jayson Swain's touchdown catch in the second quarter of the `04 contest was the last TD in the storied rivalry until Tim Castille dove into the end zone late in the third quarter.
Senior placekicker James Wilhoit tallied nine points tonight and remains the SEC's active career scoring leader with 282 points.
Today's attendance was 106,695.
Tennessee's game captains were seniors Turk McBride, Marvin Mitchell, Arron Sears, Jayson Swain, Antwan Stewart and junior Ben Greene.
Junior defensive back Inky Johnson, who suffered a season-ending injury against Air Force, also served as an honorary captain.

University of Tennessee Athletics