TENNESSEE POSTGAME NOTES

Sept. 23, 2006

Noting Tennessee

Tennessee improves to 3-1 (0-1 SEC); Marshall is now 1-3.
The Vols enter the game ranked No. 15 in the Associated Press poll and 19th in the USA Today rankings; Marshall was not ranked in either poll.

Tennessee-Marshall Series

Tennessee now leads the all-time series vs. Marshall 2-0, with the only other meeting a 34-24 UT win in Knoxville in 2003.

Phillip Fulmer's Record

Tennessee head coach Phillip Fulmer's record now stands at 131-38 (.775) in 15 seasons with the Vols.
Fulmer owns a 2-0 record against Marshall, and is now 14-1 against teams from Conference USA.
The win also marks the 75th victory for Fulmer at Neyland Stadium (75-15, .833).

Offensive Notes

Erik Ainge made the 15th start of his career, and the junior quarterback got the Vols off to a good start with a 47-yard scoring strike to Jayson Swain in the first quarter. After a well-disguised play action fake on third-and-one, Ainge lofted a ball over the Thundering Herd secondary and hit the senior wide receiver in stride for an easy stroll to the checkerboard.
Ainge completed 18 of 27 passes for 258 yards one touchdown and one interception.
LaMarcus Coker bolted for the longest UT rush from scrimmage since a 99-yard TD run in 1977 Kelsey Finch. The freshman went around the left end for an 89-yard TD in the fourth quarter to put the Vols up 23-7. Coker rushed eight times for 146 yards, giving him his first career 100-yard rushing game.
Montario Hardesty's 20-yard touchdown rush gave him a score in all four games this season. The redshirt-freshman is the first UT running back with a four-game TD streak since Travis Stephens turned the trick in 2000.
Senior TB David Yancey rushed five straight times in the fourth quarter for 23 yards. He capped off his streak with a 5-yard touchdown run, his second career touchdown.
Swain, who finished with 5 catches for 98 yards, has now caught a pass in 16 consecutive games. His 98 yards were also a career high.
The Vols had eight plays of 20 yards or more against Marshall that ties the amount they had against California.

Noting the Defense

The safety recorded by Xavier Mitchell and Matt McGlothlin on Marshall quarterback Bernard Morris opened the scoring in the first quarter and was the first for UT since 2005 against South Carolina. Jason Hall sacked Gamecocks signal-caller Blake Mitchell for the last UT two-pointer.
Jonathan Hefney, Jerod Mayo and Marvin Mitchell all led the Vols with 12 tackles. The 12 tackles establish a new career-high for Mayo
Demetrice Morley making his second career start set a new career-high with nine tackles. Morley recovered a Morris fumble late in the third quarter, the first fumble recovery of the sophomore's career.
Robert Ayres, Xavier Mitchell and Dan Williams had one sack apiece.
Eight different Vols had a TFL.
Jonathan Hefney's fourth-quarter interception was his first of the season and fifth of his career.
Antwan Stewart had one PBU.
The defense did not allow a point in the second half for the first time this season.

Miscellaneous Notes

Saturday's paid attendance was 104,818. It was the largest crowd at Neyland Stadium since the redesign dropped the listed capacity of the venue to 102,038.
A steady downpour and flash flood warning pushed the start time back for the contest by nearly an hour. Originally slated for a 4:07 p.m. kickoff, the Vols and Thundering Herd didn't even take the field for warm-ups until 4:25. By SEC rules, both teams must be allotted 30 minutes on the field before the start of the game, which resulted in the 5:02 p.m. kickoff (55-minute delay). Due to the delay, halftime was shortened to 15 minutes.
Since the onset of the tradition in 1965 against Army, Saturday marked the first time the Vols have not run through the "T" to take the field. The last time the Vols didn't enter through the "T" was the Nov. 21, 1964 against Kentucky.
Turk McBride, Arron Sears, Bret Smith, David Yancey and Ben Greene were the game captains for the Vols. McBride and Sears are each serving as captains for the third time this season.
Senior place-kicker James Wilhoit - the SEC's active career scoring leader - broke his streak of 11 consecutive field goals made when he missed a 42-yarder in the first quarter - He raised his career point total to 256 with seven points today. Wilhoit hit a 49-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.
Sophomore punter Britton Colquitt punted three times against Marshall. He pinned the Thundering Herd inside their own 10-yard line all three times. He averaged 56.0 yards punting.

Vols Tabbed for 12 p.m. start next Saturday at Memphis (TV: ESPN)

The Vols hit the road for the first time this season, traveling across the state to face another C-USA foe, Memphis. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. CST.
The Vols lead the series with Tigers 19-1, dating back to 1968. The Vols have won each of the last four meetings, including a 20-16 win last year in Knoxville.

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