Tennessee Football Sticks with Regular Spring Game Format

In an era of college football where many teams are taking a different approach to spring ball, especially the spring game, it seems as though Tennessee isn’t following that same mindset as Vols head coach Josh Heupel announced on Friday that Tennesee will hold its spring game in the usual scrimmage format.

“It’s important in particular for our young players to get a taste of what it’s going to be like in the fall to play in front of a crowd, big stadium,” Heupel said. “We open up on the road this year. You don’t want that to be the first time they’ve played in front of a bunch of people.

“So that experience, it can create urgency, understanding what it’s going to feel like as they finish up spring ball and go into summer. At the end of the day, we have to accelerate their growth curve. A spring game in those settings is part of accelerating their growth.”

Whether it’s due to a longer season, the transfer portal or something else, many of the top programs across the country, including Ohio State, are changing the format of the spring game – and spring practice as a whole.

That said, it will be interesting to see what other changes are made in terms of spring ball in this new era of college football with the expanded CFP moving forward.

Miami Hurricanes Hire Duke Assistant Jai Lucas

With Duke favored to win the NCAA Tournament, it will have to do so without one of its assistant coaches, as Jai Lucas was named the head coach of the University of Miami men’s basketball team on Thursday.

While the hiring isn’t a surprise, the timing certainly is. Lucas leaves the Blue Devils less than a week before the ACC Tournament and in the middle of what could be a national championship run. Most hirings used to happen during the offseason but in the new age of college sports with the transfer portal and NIL, that will no longer be the case, at least in basketball.

If Duke were to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament, its season would go until early April. With the transfer portal set to open March 24, Lucas would miss the first two weeks of the portal if he were to stay at Duke. Hence, he has decided to leave the Blue Devils after Duke beat North Carolina Saturday night for his first job as a head coach so that he will be with Miami when the portal opens.

“Timing, look, it’s not ideal. But there’s no other option,” Duke head coach Jon Scheyer said last Thursday. “This is the only thing that could have happened. Jai will coach our last regular-season game. And then he’ll have to move on to focus on his new job. And for us, we’re going to focus on the job that we have here, which is making a special run. Jai wanted to stay. This wasn’t a decision that Jai made. This is me and him working together.”

The 36-year-old is the son of former Maryland All-American John Lucas Jr., who was the No. 1 pick in the 1976 NBA draft. Lucas replaces Jim Larranaga after the 75-year-old stepped down in December in the middle of his 14th season with the Hurricanes.

George Mason Baseball Scores 23 Runs in an Inning

With the game tied, 0-0, George Mason rattled off a 23-run second inning against Holy Cross last Tuesday, breaking a Division I record that had stood for 42 years.

After the first batter of the inning grounded out, the floodgates opened for George Mason in a 23-run inning that had plenty of excitement:

• 11 hits (seven singles, four doubles)
• Eight walks
• Five batters were hit by pitch
• 19 consecutive hitters reached base either with a hit, walk, hit by pitch or fielder’s choice
• Five pitchers

The previous NCAA Division I record for most runs in an inning was 21, done by Valparaiso in 2010, Wichita State in 1984 and Penn in 1983.

It’s been a college baseball season full of plenty of runs so far, as Rhode Island and William and Mary combined for 58 runs (36-22) on Feb. 16, Oregon scored 35 runs in a game on March 1 and now this.

ICYMI

“Long Way to Go”: Ryan Day Wants Lincoln Kienholz, Julian Sayin and Tavien St. Clair to Show Toughness, Leadership During Ohio State’s Quarterback Battle

Ryan Day says there’s a “long way to go” in Ohio State’s quarterback battle but wants to see Lincoln Kienholz, Julian Sayin and Tavien St. Clair show toughness and leadership this spring.

New Ohio State Defensive Coordinator Matt Patricia Wants to Put Players in Position to “Play Fast and Play Aggressive”

Matt Patricia’s defense will utilize a variety of packages, but his goal is to keep things simple for Ohio State’s defenders so that they can play fast and aggressively.

“It’s Your Job to Bring Value”: Will Howard Says Billy Fessler Taught Him “More Than A Lot Of Guys Could Have” Last Year and Keenan Bailey Praises Fessler’s Football Mind

Will Howard says Billy Fessler taught him “more than a lot of guys could have” last season and Keenan Bailey said Fessler is “one of the smartest football minds” he’s been around.

What’s Next

• 34 Days: Ohio State Football Spring Showcase
• 174 Days: Ohio State Football season opener vs. Texas
• 237 Days: Jim Knowles returns to Columbus
• 265 Days: The Game

Tennessee will face either Texas A&M, Vanderbilt or Texas in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals on Friday afternoon at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. The Vols are the No. 4 seed, awaiting No. 5 Texas A&M, No. 12 Vanderbilt or No. 13 Texas.

The SEC Tournament bracket was officially set Saturday night, with Tennessee scheduled to play at approximately 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time Friday on ESPN.

No. 12 Vanderbilt and No. 13 Texas play Wednesday at approximately 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time on SEC Network. The winner advances to face No. 5 Texas A&M at the same time Thursday on SEC Network.

Tennessee beat Texas 74-70 at Texas on January 11, won 77-69 at Texas A&M on February 22 and split the regular-season series with Vanderbilt, losing 76-75 in Nashville on January 18 and winning 81-76 in Knoxville on February 15.

Tennessee clinched the No. 4 seed with the 75-65 Senior Day win over South Carolina at Food City Center on Saturday and with No. 7 Alabama beating No. 1 Auburn in overtime at Neville Arena in Auburn.

Auburn is the No. 1 seed and will face either No. 8 Ole Miss, No. 9 Arkansas or No. 16 South Carolina. Florida is the No. 2 seed on the bottom half of the bracket and will play No. 7 Missouri, No. 10 Mississippi State or No. 15 LSU. Alabama is the No. 3 seed and will play either No. 6 Kentucky, No. 11 Georgia or No. 14 Oklahoma.

Vols finished 12-6 in SEC play, won eight of final 10

Tennessee finished 12-6 in SEC play, winning eight of its final 10 games of the regular season, dating back to the 64-44 win over Florida on February 1. 

The only losses over the last five weeks were at Kentucky on February 11 and at Ole Miss on Wednesday. Tennessee lost three road games in conference play by a combined five points, falling 76-75 at Vanderbilt, 53-51 at Auburn and the two-point loss at Ole Miss. 

Tennessee started the season by tying a program record with a 14-0 start, including a 76-52 win over Arkansas to start SEC play on January 4. The Vols lost four of their next four of their next seven over three weeks.

Tennessee’s history in the SEC Tournament under Rick Barnes

Tennessee won the SEC Tournament in 2022 — the program’s first conference tournament championship since 1979 — after beating Mississippi State, Kentucky and Texas A&M over three days in Tampa. 

The Vols played for the SEC Tournament title in both 2018 and 2019, losing to Kentucky in 2018 in St. Louis and to Auburn a year later in Nashville.

Tennessee was one-and-done in the SEC Tournament a year ago, losing 73-56 to Mississippi State before going on an NCAA Tournament run to the Elite Eight. 

The Vols lost in the quarterfinals to Missouri in 2023, after beating Ole Miss a day earlier, and went to the semifinals in 2021 before losing to Alabama.

Tennessee played three games in the 2016 SEC Tournament, in the first year under Rick Barnes, beating Auburn and Vanderbilt before losing to LSU in the quarterfinals as the No. 12 seed. The Vols were one-and-done in 2017 after a loss to Georgia in the No. 8 vs. No. 9 seed game.

In a season finale that epitomized their competitive spirit despite a difficult conference campaign, South Carolina pushed fourth-ranked Tennessee to the limit before ultimately falling 75-65 Saturday afternoon in Knoxville.

The Gamecocks (12-19, 2-16 SEC) entered Thompson-Boling Arena as heavy underdogs but matched the Volunteers (25-6, 12-6 SEC) shot for shot for much of the contest, even taking a brief second-half lead before Tennessee’s talent and home-court advantage proved decisive down the stretch.

After trailing by as many as 10 points early, South Carolina mounted an impressive first-half comeback. Jamari Thomas, who finished with a team-high 20 points, spearheaded the surge that saw the Gamecocks take a 34-31 lead in the final minute of the opening period. Though Tennessee’s Cade Phillips converted a three-point play to tie the game at 34 heading into halftime, South Carolina had served notice they wouldn’t go quietly.

The teams traded leads eight times throughout the contest, with South Carolina last holding a 42-41 advantage with 14:38 remaining after a Collin Murray-Boyles layup. However, the Volunteers responded with an 8-0 run over the next three minutes to create separation.

Still, the Gamecocks continued to fight. Arden Conyers, who finished with 9 points on 3-of-4 shooting from beyond the arc, hit his third three-pointer to trim the deficit to 50-47 with 12:41 remaining. But Tennessee’s Chaz Lanier took over, scoring 10 of his game-high 23 points in a four-minute stretch that helped push the Volunteers’ lead to 58-50.

South Carolina remained within striking distance until the final minutes. Nick Pringle’s dunk with 6:51 remaining cut Tennessee’s lead to 64-56, but the Gamecocks went over four minutes without a field goal during a crucial stretch late in the game. By the time Thomas connected on a three-pointer with 56 seconds left, the outcome had largely been decided.

Pringle finished with 16 points and 14 rebounds for an impreessive double-double, while Zachary Davis added 10 points. Murray-Boyles, who had dominated in recent games, was limited to 7 points against Tennessee’s stout interior defense.

The Volunteers shot 54.5% from the field and controlled the paint, outscoring South Carolina 42-24 inside. Lanier’s 23 points came on 9-of-16 shooting, while Zakai Zeigler orchestrated the offense with 8 assists despite scoring just one point. Cameron Phillips provided a spark off the bench with 15 points, and Igor Milicic Jr. contributed 13 points and 5 rebounds.

Despite the loss, South Carolina’s performance against one of the SEC’s elite teams represented significant improvement from much of their conference slate. The Gamecocks competed at a high level throughout, shooting 77.3% from the free-throw line (17-of-22) and committing just 9 turnovers against Tennessee’s pressure defense.

South Carolina now turns its attention to the SEC Tournament in Nashville next week, where they’ll enter as the 16th seed with their opponent still to be determined. Though the regular season record wasn’t what they hoped, the Gamecocks’ late-season competitiveness suggests they could be a dangerous first-round opponent for whoever they face.