Tennessee
County commission fighting against Tennessee methadone clinic
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – A methadone clinic could soon open up in Cookeville, but Putnam County commissioners are fighting against it.
Commissioners said dozens of people have put up signs in their yards pushing back against the clinic in their community, but clinic leaders aren’t letting that stop them.
Cedar Recovery Center has one of its 14 Tennessee methadone clinics in Mt. Juliet. They want to expand into Cookeville.
“We filed a certificate of need application to begin the provision of an opioid treatment program in Putnam County,” Paul Trivette, chief strategy officer for Cedar Recovery, said.
Trivette said they’re applying to open a clinic that will help people fight against drug addiction but county commissioners are fighting against it. During a meeting on June 24, Commissioner Fred Vondra said they heard from Trivette and even some recovering drug addicts.
“There were some powerful testimonies given by recovering people…that basically stated that putting that in is just taking one addiction and switching it to another, there are better ways to treat people,” Vondra said.
Because of those testimonies, Vondra said the commission voted unanimously against the clinic moving into Cookeville.
“It’s really sad that they’re opposing this. There is no question, the evidence is undeniable that the utilization of medication to treat opioid use disorders, specifically methadone, Buprenorphine and naltrexone is the gold standard of care,” Trivette said.
He adds that Putnam County is a “treatment desert,” meaning there are very few opioid addiction treatment centers nearby and no methadone clinics in the county.
“There are around 101 people that live in the upper Cumberland area…that are traveling every day to get this service,” Trivette said.
“We already have Suboxone being distributed in this other clinic that we have in Cookeville so we don’t need another one,” Vondra said. “People are writing letters, there are yards sings up all over Cookeville that they don’t want this in their backyard.”
Vondra adds that it’s in the hands of the Tennessee Health Facilities Commission. Hundreds of people in Putnam County have put together a petition for while Cedar Recovery hopes it works out in their favor.
“Even though it passed it doesn’t bother me, and the reason it doesn’t bother me is because we’re going to state committed to the community,” Trivette said.
The THFC plans to vote on the clinic July 31.
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Tennessee
Oklahoma announcer apologizes after blasting Tennessee over Neyland Stadium Spanish radio setup
This story was updated to add new information.
Oklahoma football play-by-play radio announcer Toby Rowland blasted the University of Tennessee on social media for not providing a booth in the Neyland Stadium press box for the Sooners’ Spanish-speaking radio broadcast for the Nov. 1 game.
Rowland took his complaints directly to X with two posts on Oct. 27, saying he hopes other SEC schools will be “more accomodating” than Tennessee. Three hours later, Rowland posted an apology.
UT replied to Rowland’s initial complaint on X, pointing out that its own Spanish broadcast crew calls the games off site at a studio rather than Neyland Stadium because of space restrictions. Tennessee, Texas, Oklahoma and Alabama are the only SEC schools with a Spanish radio broadcast of football games.
“Tennessee is not providing a broadcast location for our @LosSooners broadcast crew this week. Tennessee suggested we leave them home to broadcast off television. We don’t want to set that unfair precedent. Enrique & Luis are treasured members of the Sooner Radio Team,” Rowland posted on X.
“So we’ve invited them to share our booth Saturday in Knoxville. It’ll be cozy & we may hear each other in background occasionally. But, we’re excited for this experience, value our awesomely talented @LosSooners crew & hope future SEC foes will be more accommodating.”
No. 14 Tennessee (6-2, 3-2 SEC) plays No. 18 Oklahoma (6-2, 2-2 SEC) on Nov. 1 (7:30 p.m. ET, ABC) at Neyland Stadium.
How Tennessee replied to Oklahoma announcer’s complaint
UT football spokesman Bill Martin replied to Rowland on X, referencing a conversation he previously had with him about the arrangements. He also pointed out that UT’s own Spanish broadcast calls games from the WNML studio, featuring play-by-play announer Carlos Lopez and analyst J.P. Vasquez.
“Toby – look forward to seeing you. For the record, our own Spanish broadcast team doesn’t call the game in our stadium because we have no booth or deck to safely accommodate. They call in a studio,” Martin posted on X. “We are a glass enclosed press box high above. We also have national radio here as well in the secondary booth.
“As has previously been discussed, we have one of the largest home/visiting radio booths with three rows and activated additional lines last week to accommodate both broadcasts in your booth.”
According to Rowland, Oklahoma will have English and Spanish radio crews in the same room, an option that UT offered.
Martin confirmed to Knox News that UT activated an additional broadcast line for the Spanish radio crew at UT’s expense to accomodate Oklahoma.
Two hours after Martin responded to the initial post on X, Rowland replied with an apology.
“My sincere apologies for the tone of my earlier tweet. It was clumsy. Absolutely no shade intended,” Rowland posted. “Simply want fans to know why Saturday’s broadcast may sound different. Tennessee has been 1st class & our entire @OUontheAir & @LosSooners crews can’t wait to be back in Rocky Top!”
Why there’s no extra room for Oklahoma’s second radio crew
Neyland Stadium actually has more booths than most FBS facilities, but the popularity of UT games puts that space at a premium.
There are three radio booths in Neyland Stadium for home, visitor and national radio crews. Most of UT’s SEC games are carried by a national radio broadcast like Westwood One, ESPN Radio or Touchdown Radio.
For the Vols’ game against Oklahoma, Touchdown Radio will be in the third radio booth, which UT is contractually obligated to provide.
The rest of the press box is designated for the TV broadcast crew, home and visiting coaches and writers covering the game.
Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.
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Tennessee
Three Titans DBs Suffer Injuries vs. Colts
The Tennessee Titans continue to get bit by the injury bug against the Indianapolis Colts, especially in the secondary.
In the second half, three Titans defensive backs have dealt with injuries that are compromising them against the Colts.
Amani Hooker walking off with trainers @Titans
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) October 26, 2025
Hooker, a seventh-year pro that has spent his entire career with the Titans, suffered the injury while attempting to tackle Colts running back Jonathan Taylor. Hooker has dealt with injuries throughout his career and it seems as though it happens at some point every season.
Hooker signed a three-year extension with the Titans this offseason worth $48.6 million and is one of the top defensive backs the team has. Losing him for a long period of time would be a big loss for the Titans defense.
Darrell Baker Jr just walked off slowly with @Titans trainers
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) October 26, 2025
Titans cornerback Darrell Baker Jr. has stepped up to the plate this season, especially after second-year pro Jarvis Brownlee Jr. was traded to the New York Jets. On top of L’Jarius Sneed being placed on injured reserve earlier this week, the Titans need Baker to be part of the team.
According to team reporter Jim Wyatt, Baker is being evaluated for a concussion and has entered the league’s protocol.
Xavier Woods is QUEST to return with hamstring for @Titans
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) October 26, 2025
Woods signed a two-year deal with the Titans in the offseason coming off a year in which he was the Carolina Panthers leader in tackles. This season, Woods ranks fourth on the team in that category behind Hooker, Cody Barton and Cedric Gray.
Losing Woods is also another major loss for the Titans secondary, especially with all of the other injuries piling up for the team.
The Titans have the aforementioned Sneed (quad) and safety Mike Brown (knee) on injured reserve. With three more injuries to the secondary, the Titans are running out of bodies and options to play against a Colts offense that ranks No. 1 in the NFL this season.
The Titans can turn to cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis, Kendell Brooks, Roger McCreary, former Colts player Samuel Womack and sixth-round rookie Marcus Harris out of California. At the safety spot, the Titans have veteran Quandre Diggs and third-round rookie Kevin Winston Jr., who has been given a role increase before the injuries came about.
The Titans also have Alex Johnson and Sam Webb on the practice squad, both of whom could be given consideration for an elevation if any of these injuries linger into next week.
Make sure you bookmark Tennessee Titans on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!
Tennessee
Aguilar throws three touchdowns to lead No. 17 Tennessee over Kentucky
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Joey Aguilar threw for 396 yards and three touchdowns, DeSean Bishop ran for a pair of touchdowns, and No. 17 Tennessee took advantage of two first quarter turnovers to beat Kentucky 56-34 on Saturday night.
Aguilar completed touchdown passes of 35, 13, and 62 yards to pace the Volunteers (6-2, 3-2 Southeastern Conference). Chris Brazzell II had 138 yards receiving and Mike Matthews added 107 yards receiving and each had a touchdown.
“You look at the turnovers defensively, they changed the way the game was played,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said. “I’m proud of the way our guys competed, coming on the road, getting a win against a team that took Texas to overtime a week ago. There’s things we can certainly clean up, and we’ll need to as we keep going through conference play.”
Kentucky’s Cutter Boley tried to match Aguilar, throwing for 330 yards and a school record for a freshman quarterback five touchdowns, but also threw a pick-six that put the Wildcats (2-5, 0-5) in a 14-0 hole.
He had scoring passes of 71, 56, 3, 28 and 7 yards. D.J. Miller had 120 yards receiving and two touchdowns.
The Takeaway
Tennessee: The defensive unit came into the game ranked last in the conference in pass defense, but two turnovers led to 14 Volunteer points. Edrees Farooq fielded his own batted pass and returned it 45 yards for a touchdown. The Vols could move up a couple of spots in the Top 25 after SEC teams ranked higher, Missouri and Oklahoma, lost.
Kentucky: The Wildcats scored more than two offensive touchdowns in a game for the first time since Nov. 11, 2023, a span of 13 games. The loss was Kentucky’s 10th straight conference loss, and 11th straight home loss to a Power 4 team.
Kentucky linebacker Daveren Rayner sacks Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar (6) in the first quarter of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, in Lexington, Ky. Credit: AP/Michael Swensen
All eyes on Stoops’ future
The loss will only increase the pressure on Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart to make a decision on coach Mark Stoops, the longest-tenured coach in the SEC. A restless fan base has been vocal on moving on from the program’s winningest coach and showed it Saturday as the crowd was easily split 50-50 between Tennessee and Kentucky fans. By the end it was mostly Volunteer fans gathered in the corner singing “Rocky Top” as the rest of Kroger Field was empty.
A one-play comedy
One play symbolized how Kentucky’s season has gone. In the first quarter, Boley completed a pass to Hardley Gilmore IV, who fumbled. Ja’Mori Maclin tried to pick the ball up, but it squirted backward. Two Kentucky lineman had a shot at the ball, which kept rolling before Maclin did pick it up. Boo Carter then forced Maclin to fumble and it was recovered by Jadon Perlotte at the Kentucky 12. Tack on an unnecessary roughness penalty on Kentucky, and the result was a 23-yard loss.
Up Next
Tennessee: Hosts No. 13 Oklahoma on Saturday.
Kentucky: Travels to Auburn on Saturday.
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