Tennessee
Dylan Sampson is only two rushing touchdowns away from Tennessee's single-season record
Dylan Sampson enters Saturday’s game against Alabama just two touchdowns short of matching Tennessee’s single-season program record. The junior running back so far has 15 rushing touchdowns in just six games.
Gene McEver holds the all-time program record with 18 rushing touchdowns in 1929, while Reggie Cobb holds the modern record with 17 scored in 1987.
McEver also holds Tennessee’s all-time career rushing touchdown record with 37 between 1928 and 1931. James Stewart holds the modern record 35 from 1991 to 1994.
“He’s always had great vision, great pace,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said Saturday night, after Sampson ran 27 times for 112 yards and three touchdowns. “Obviously he’s got good long speed, but he’s really good between the tackles.”
No. 11 Tennessee vs. No. 7 Alabama, Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC
The single-season records could be tied or broken Saturday against Alabama, with Sampson already having scored two or more rushing touchdowns in five of Tennessee’s six games this season.
He had three in the season-opening win over Chattanooga on August 31, two more a week later in the 51-10 win over NC State in Charlotte and a season-high four against Kent State, all in the first half, on September 21.
Sampson had three rushing touchdowns Saturday in Tennessee’s 23-17 win overtime win over Florida, two at Arkansas two weeks ago and one at Oklahoma.
He’s now up to 29 total touchdowns — 28 rushing, one receiving — in just 28 career games at Tennessee. Games with multiple touchdowns has been the norm, with Sampson scoring his 29 touchdowns in just 15 of his 28 games with the Vols.
Dylan Sampson within reach of multiple Tennessee single-season rushing records
Single-season touchdowns is far from the only record Sampson could end up breaking.
Travis Stephens holds the single-season rushing yards record with 1,464. Sampson, sitting on 699 yards through six games, is on pace for 1,398 yards during the regular season.
Sampson is on pace for 236 carries. Travis Stephens holds that record, too, with 291 in 2001.
Sampson has also rushed for 100 yards or more in five of the first six games this season. Jay Graham holds the record with 11 100-yard games in 1995.
Graham also holds the record for yards per game, averaging 130.7 in 11 games in 1995. Sampson is averaging 116.5 yards per game so far.
Sampson is also averaging 5.92 yards per carry, with 699 yards on 118 attempts. The program record for yards per rush (minimum 200 carries) is 5.91, set by Chuck Webb in 1989 when he ran for 1,236 yards on 209 attempts.
Sampson is up to 1,700 career rush yards at Tennessee on 282 attempts, averaging 6.0 yards per rush.
“I think his growth, continuing to grow in the understanding of what we’re doing,” Heupel said. “But physical strength, just his development in the middle of the football field, those runs between the tackles, just continues to make a bunch of plays for us.
Tennessee
Sick and tired: Counties near Chattanooga are now reporting highest flu rates in Tennessee
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn — Tennessee health officials say flu activity is rising sharply in around Chattanooga, with counties surrounding Hamilton showing some of the highest rates in the state.
Marion, Grundy, Sequatchie, Bradley, Meigs, Rhea, Bledsoe, McMinn and Polk counties are currently the only areas in Tennessee rated “very high” for influenza activity by the Tennessee Dept. of Health. Photo via the Tennessee Health Dept.
Marion, Grundy, Sequatchie, Bradley, Meigs, Rhea, Bledsoe, McMinn and Polk counties are currently the only areas in Tennessee rated “very high” for influenza activity by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
These counties have flu positivity rates greater than 10 percent. By comparison, the statewide average is 6.5 percent, and Hamilton County itself is at 6.9 percent.
State and federal health experts say the surge comes as influenza A(H3N2) continues to circulate widely. The CDC reports at least 11 million flu illnesses, 120,000 hospitalizations, and 5,000 deaths nationwide so far this season. One pediatric death was reported this week in Tennessee, bringing the season total to nine nationwide.
File photo: Getty Images.
Georgia officials are also reporting higher-than-average flu activity, signaling that the region is experiencing a particularly active season. Health authorities encourage residents six months and older to get vaccinated if they have not already and to take precautions such as frequent handwashing and staying home when sick.
Flu activity is expected to remain elevated in Tennessee and across the U.S. for several more weeks, according to the CDC. Local hospitals and clinics are urging families to monitor symptoms and seek care early, especially for children, older adults, and those with chronic health conditions.
For the latest guidance on influenza vaccination and antiviral treatments, visit the Tennessee Department of Health or the CDC at cdc.gov.
Tennessee launched the country’s first-ever public database tracking and listing convicted domestic abusers as part of a ratified law honoring a sheriff’s deputy who was murdered by her abusive ex-boyfriend.
The database, which officially launched on Jan. 1, includes offenders’ names, photos and dates of birth and is part of Savanna’s Law. The bill was signed into law by Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee in May 2025 and required the state to establish the registry in Savanna Puckett’s name.
Puckett, a 22-year-old Robertson County Sheriff’s deputy, was tragically killed by her ex-boyfriend, James Conn, at her home on Jan. 23, 2022. Conn had a lengthy history of domestic assault arrests that Puckett had no knowledge of before they began dating.
Conn shot Puckett in the torso and head before he set her home on fire. He pleaded guilty to her murder in August 2023 and was sentenced to life in prison.
Puckett’s distraught mother, Kim Dodson, was determined to save other domestic abuse victims from her daughter’s fate and began pushing state lawmakers for change.
She was a staunch advocate for the bill’s passage and said that if the registry had existed sooner, her daughter might still be alive.
“I was just horrified when I finally saw all those records because I know Savanna well enough that she would have never dated him. I honestly, honestly, honestly feel that if she had known that she could still be here,” Dodson told WSMV.
The domestic abuser registry is run through the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and lists anyone in the state who has been convicted of at least two domestic violence-related charges, according to the website.
However, the offender’s registration is dependent on the accusing victim. If the victim doesn’t consent to their abuser’s name being included, then the offender can bypass the registry.
The database doesn’t include info on offenders convicted before the new year, so the current list is limited. But it was made in the mirror image of the state’s sex offender registry, which is more fleshed out with decades-worth of listings.
The sex offender registry includes a rolling queue of “wanted violators” and a “map of offenders.”
Tennessee has previously ranked among the top 10 states with the most domestic violence homicides. In 2019, it tied for fifth with South Carolina in a separate list detailing the states with the highest femicide rates, WTVF reported.
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