It was smooth sailing for Tennessee this afternoon in Knoxville as the Volunteers opened up the Josh Elander era with a win. Tennessee did Tennessee things, jumping out to an early lead and never looking back on their way to a blowout win.

Reese Chapman got things going this afternoon, driving in Blaine Brown on an opposite field double. Brown singled in his first at bat as a Volunteer, setting the table for the Tennessee offense. Chapman would come back in the 3rd inning with another double, driving in another. Stone Lawless would knock him in with yet another double.

Tennessee took a 3-0 lead into the 4th inning and Teagan Kuhns was dealing. Nicholls had nothing for the right-hander, who is coming off of a strong summer in the Cape Cod league.

Henry Ford smacked a 2-run shot to dead center to push Tennessee out to a 5-0 lead in the bottom of the 4th. The former Virginia Cavalier hit leadoff for the Volunteers today and immediately made his presence felt.

Ariel Antigua drove in another in the 5th and then another in the 7th.

Kuhns would end up going 6.2 innings on the night. He tossed 86 pitches, striking out eight batters and walking only one. Kuhns surrendered only two hits.

Tennessee, up 8-0 in the bottom of the 8th, would launch back to back solo shots to end this one with a run-rule. JUCO hitter Tyler Myatt hit the first to right, then Stone Lawless hit one to left.

The Volunteers won 10-0 to take a 1-0 lead in the series.

Lawless, Antigua and Ford all drove in two runs. Tennessee had 11 hits in total on the day. Nic Abraham came in to finish things up on the mound, getting four outs and giving up no hits.

Tennessee and Nicholls will play game No. 2 on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET. SEC Network+ (ESPN App) will once again have the call.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — The push to bring the Super Bowl to Nashville is putting a spotlight on Tennessee’s tax laws as state lawmakers look for ways to make the state more attractive to the NFL.

The issue came up during the state Finance Ways and Means Committee meeting Thursday, amid reports that Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold may have lost money playing in the big game in California because of that state’s duty tax. Also called the “jock tax,” it means athletes who play there get billed by the state.

State Rep. William Lamberth, R-Portland, said Tennessee does not have a jock tax.

“We do not have a ‘Jock Tax’ and I hope it makes us more competitive for many other sporting events out there because unless that person lives in this state, and buys things in this state, they’re not paying taxes in this state, and that’s how we run a good robust government with low taxes,” Lamberth said.

The commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Tourism Development said there could be an announcement on a Super Bowl in Nashville as soon as this year.

Tennessee now has 17 sites along the United States Civil Rights Trail, giving visitors the opportunity to experience landmarks tied to the struggle for equality.

In Nashville, stops along the trail include the Civil Rights Room at the Nashville Public Library, Clark Memorial United Methodist Church and Fisk University.

Now, two more locations are joining that list: the Museum of Christian & Gospel Music and the Jefferson Street Sound Museum.

For decades, Jefferson Street was known as the heart of Nashville’s Black entertainment scene, with music spilling from nightclubs that once lined the corridor.

“This was the street in Nashville for Black folk,” Lorenzo Washington said.

But in the 1960s, construction of Interstate 40 tore through the neighborhood, destroying hundreds of homes and businesses and forever changing the area.

About 15 years ago, Lorenzo Washington decided those musical legacies would not be forgotten.

He founded and curated the Jefferson Street Sound Museum inside what used to be his own home.

“They were afraid their legacy was being lost,” Washington said. “And that’s why I turned my house — this was my house. We’re sitting in what used to be my living room.”

Now, that history is receiving national recognition.

The museum has officially been added to the U.S. Civil Rights Trail — a collection of more than 130 sites across multiple states and Washington, D.C., where activists challenged segregation in the 1950s and 1960s.

“Tennessee itself has 17 sites — that’s pretty fantastic,” said Karen Coffee, the museum’s vice president.

Coffee said the house itself is part of that history.

“This house was built in 1909, and it’s a testament to the Civil Rights Movement,” Coffee said. “All the marches happened right in front of this house.”

For Washington, the recognition is deeply personal.

“A lot of those artists I got a chance to know lived through Jim Crow,” he said. “They would be ecstatic — elated — to know all of this is happening on historic Jefferson Street.”

Washington said the designation is proof that both the music and the movement continue to resonate.

The Jefferson Street Sound Museum is open Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and by appointment Tuesday through Thursday.

This story was reported by Aaron Cantrell and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.