Tennessee

No. 1 Tennessee vs. No. 23 Arkansas: Game information, lineups, notes

Published

2 days ago

January 4, 2025

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No. 1 Tennessee vs. No. 23 Arkansas: Game information, lineups, notes

Tennessee emerged from its non-conference slate unbeaten and has topped the major polls for four-straight weeks.

Now, the No. 1 Vols (13-0) begin their biggest challenge: SEC play.

TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM

Tennessee opens league action against No. 23 Arkansas (11-2) at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center on Saturday (1 p.m. ET, ESPN) in the first of back-to-back games against ranked teams and one with a number of intriguing storylines.

The Razorbacks, winners of four-straight, are led by a familiar face in John Calipari, who is in his first season after leaving Kentucky where he went up against the Vols in several notable games in the previous 15 years. Saturday also marks the return of former Vols forward Jonas Aidoo, now on the visitors side.

Aidoo will be facing a few of his former teammates, but Tennessee’s impressive start has been helped by the addition of two transfers of their own in starting guard Chaz Lanier and forward Igor Milicic Jr.

Lanier leads the Vols in scoring with 19.6 points per game and has scored 20-plus in six of 13 games, while Milicic is the team’s top rebounder, pulling down 8.2 per game.

The staples of Tennessee’s roster that were key in winning the league one year ago will again be key in its success in an SEC that has 10 teams ranked in the polls and 13 projected to reach the NCAA Tournament.

That includes the league’s assists leader in Zakai Zeigler and one of its most stingy defenders in Jahmai Mashack. And the bench, tested after the loss of JP Estrella to a season-ending injury and the abrupt exit for Cam Carr, has at least two proven options in Jordan Gainey and Cade Phillips.

How all of their contributions translate to what has proven to be the best conference in college basketball after a month and a half will soon be determined.

Here is everything you need to know about Tennessee’s SEC opener.

GAME INFORMATION

Who: No. 23 Arkansas (11-2) at No. 1 Tennessee (13-0)

When: Saturday, Jan. 4 | 1 p.m. ET

Where: Food City Center | Knoxville

TV: ESPN (Karl Ravech, play-by-play; Jimmy Dykes, analyst)

Radio: Vol Network (Bob Kesling, play-by-play; Bert Bertelkamp, analyst)

Series: 49th meeting all-time (Tennessee leads, 26-22)

KenPom: Tennessee 76, Arkansas 64

PROJECTED LINEUPS

NUMBERS EDGE

POINTS PER GAME

Arkansas 82.5

Tennessee 80.1

FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE

Arkansas 51.5%

Tennessee 48.9%

THREE-POINT PERCENTAGE

Arkansas 36.8%

Tennessee 35.5%

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Three thoughts ahead of Tennessee basketball’s SEC opener vs. Arkansas

ASSISTS

Tennessee 16.8

Arkansas 16.8

REBOUNDS

Tennessee 38.9

Arkansas 36.2

BLOCKS

Arkansas 5.7

Tennessee 5.5

PREGAME NOTES

— Rick Barnes and John Calipari are meeting again as two of the winningest active head coaches in college basketball. Calipari is No. 1 among Division I coaches with 824 victories while Barnes is second with 819. Barnes is 13-12 vs. Calipari in head-to-head match ups.

— Tennessee will look to continue its success as the No. 1 team in the Associated Press Top 25 poll. The Vols are 13-2 all-time as the top-ranked team in the poll, and 12-1 under Rick Barnes, including a five-game win streak since jumping to No. 1 four weeks ago.

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Rick Barnes assesses Tennessee basketball ahead of SEC play

— Tennessee and Arkansas’ non-conference schedule included three common opponents. The Vols went 3-0 vs. Baylor, Illinois and Miami, winning by an average margin of victory 10.0 points while the Razorbacks went 1-2 against those teams, beating Miami and losing to Baylor and Illinois at neutral sites.

— Arkansas guard Johnell Davis was listed as “probable” on the initial SEC availability report on Friday night. Davis hasn’t played since Dec. 14, sidelined by a wrist injury. Davis began his career at Florida Atlantic. He scored 15 points against Tennessee in the Sweet 16 in 2023. He is averaging 9.2 points with the Razorbacks.

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Tennessee

Meet the 2024 Tennessee high school football all-state teams in Class 1A, 2A, 3A from TSWA

Published

6 hours ago

January 6, 2025

Press Room

Meet the 2024 Tennessee high school football all-state teams in Class 1A, 2A, 3A from TSWA

The Tennessee Sports Writers Association has released Division I all-state football teams for the 2024 TSSAA season.

Below are the all-state teams for Division I, Classes 1A, 2A and 3A.

Class 1A

Offense

Quarterbacks: Tate Surber, McKenzie, Sr.; Nate Adams, Clay County, Sr.; Brody Whittaker, MASE, Sr.

Running backs: Grayson Kreis, Harriman, Sr.; JaMychal Buckner, South Pittsburg, Jr.; Marquis Gardner, Chattanooga Prep, Jr.

Wide receivers: Cole Brown, McKenzie, So.; Nolan Adams, Clay County, Jr.; Ja’Quan Benton, Oliver Springs, Jr.

Offensive linemen: Jamarkus Pittman, MASE, Sr.; Kelan Roberson, Union City, Sr.; Noah Young, Cloudland, Sr.; Aydan Blair, Moore County, Sr.; Xavier Reviere, South Pittsburg, Jr.

Athlete: Amari Cotton, Jo Byrns, Sr.

Kicker: Skyler Fornera, McKenzie, Sr.

Defense

Defensive linemen: Caden Jackson, Oliver Springs, Sr.; Caleb Carroll, Wartburg, Sr.; J.R. Hardrick, South Pittsburg, Jr.; Peyton Martin, Moore County, Sr.

Linebackers: Eli Justice, Coalfield, Sr.; Zac Mahoney, Harriman, Sr.; Stanley Burrow, MASE, Sr.; Akeem Hunt, MASE, So.

Defensive backs: Dayon Cooper, South Pittsburg, So.; Bennett McDougal, Whitwell, Sr.; Devonte Wigfall, Cosby, Sr.; Kaidence Nelson, MASE, So.

Punter: Khari Escobar, Sale Creek, Sr.

Class 2A

Offense

Quarterbacks: Andrew Johnson, Fairley, Jr.; Kason William Young, East Robertson, So.; Tilton Pickett, Marion County, Sr.

Running backs: Jaydon Peete, Milan, Jr.; Cooper White, Westmoreland, Sr.; Dominique Burleson, Hampton, Sr.

Wide receivers: Troyce Grimsley, Fairley, Jr.; Corben Reynolds, Loretto, Jr.; Sam Pickett, Marion County, Sr.

Offensive linemen: Zach Bruggner, Bledsoe County, Sr.; David Lands, Polk County, Sr.; Ben Parr, Milan, Sr.; Bra’Kyrin Cole, Jackson Central-Merry, Sr.; Caleb Woodley, Fairley, Sr.; Hunter Gray, Westmoreland, Sr.

Athlete: Gray Eubanks, Huntingdon, Sr.

Defense

Defensive linemen: Delandis Dandridge, Fairley, Sr.; Kenderrius Robertson, Mitchell, Sr.; Myles Mays, Marion County, Sr.; Zach Groves, East Robertson, Jr.

Linebackers: Taylor Scharber, Marion County, Sr.; Evan Plunkett, Mt. Pleasant, Sr.; Ryan Shaffer, Tellico Plains, Sr.; Quint Smith, Summertown, Sr.

Defensive backs: Austin Franklin, West Greene, Sr.; Lake Drake, York Institute, Sr.; Levi James, Oneida, Sr.; Braden Reed, Tellico Plains, Sr.

Punter: Braydon Case, Mt. Pleasant, Jr.

Class 3A

Offense

Quarterbacks: Graham Simpson, Westview, Fr.; Eli Graf, Alcoa, Sr.; Xavier Murray, White House Heritage, So.

Running backs: Skylan Smith, Covington, Sr.; Lorenz Wright, Memphis East, Jr.; Hicks Hunter, Sycamore, Jr.

Wide receivers: Dontez Joy, Westview, Jr.; Jamir Dean, Alcoa, So.; Radarious Jackson, Sheffield, Sr.

Offensive linemen: Jayden Jackson, East Nashville, Sr.; Josh Phelps, Sequatchie County, Sr.; Lucas Hughes, Meigs County, Jr. ; Jacob Crow, Alcoa, Jr.; Evan Allen, Gatlinburg-Pittman, Sr.; Marlee Watts, Alcoa, So.

Athlete: Ronye Watson, Chattanooga Central, Sr.Kicker: Kyrin Tyson, Alcoa, Jr.

Defense

Defensive linemen: Jaeden Isbell, Tyner, Sr.; Jamir Turner, Alcoa, Sr.; Deangelo Franklin, Sheffield, Jr.; Jaxon Cupples, Westview, Jr.

Linebackers: Kason Hicks, Sequatchie County, Jr.; Sam Cretsinger, Johnson County, Sr.; Eli Owens, Alcoa, Sr.; Craig Huskey, Gatlinburg-Pittman, Jr.

Defensive backs: Condis Cherry, Alcoa, So.; Dason Springer, White House Heritage, Sr.; Antoni Morton, East Nashville, Sr.; Hunter Minton, Sequatchie County, So.

Punter: Grant Garner, Liberty Creek, So.

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Tennessee

Tennessee Titans 2025 opponents set with fourth-place AFC South schedule

Published

13 hours ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

Tennessee Titans 2025 opponents set with fourth-place AFC South schedule

The Tennessee Titans’ full list of 2025 opponents is set as the fourth-place team in the AFC South.

Tennessee will play six divisional games, plus games against teams from the AFC West and NFC West. The Titans also will also play the Browns, Saints and Patriots as fellow last-place teams from their respective divisions.

The Titans’ offseason became more interesting on Sunday when they earned the No. 1 overall pick in April’s NFL draft via the Week 18 loss to Houston and New England’s win over Buffalo.

Here’s the full list of the Titans regular-season opponents in 2025.

Titans 2025 opponents

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Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Kansas City Chiefs
Los Angeles Chargers
Los Angeles Rams
Seattle Seahawks
New England Patriots
New Orleans Saints

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Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Denver Broncos
Las Vegas Raiders
San Francisco 49ers
Arizona Cardinals
Cleveland Browns

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Tennessee

John Calipari on rebounding deficit vs. Tennessee: ‘We’ve got to do some soul searching’

Published

21 hours ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

John Calipari on rebounding deficit vs. Tennessee: ‘We’ve got to do some soul searching’

The Arkansas Razorbacks ran into a buzzsaw with the Tennessee Volunteers on Saturday. Almost immediately, head coach John Calipari saw his team go down and struggle to come back from their early deficit.

Following the game, John Calipari immediately pointed to rebounding as the main issue in the game. It was that dominance on the boards that cost the Razorbacks and now means the Razorbacks are going to need some soul searching moving forward.

“They kind of manhandled us,” John Calipari said. “I can’t remember the last time I had a team get beat by 30 rebounds, and so we got to do some soul searching because this league, what they play like, everybody plays like. So we miss free throws, we miss threes and we get out-rebounded by 30, aren’t you like, how did you only get beat by 25? It could have been 50. But hats off to Tennessee. They’re the number one team for a reason and they did it to us.”

In the end, Tennessee won the game 76-52. That was on the back of a 51-29 rebounding gap between the two teams. Arkansas had just nine offensive rebounds compared to 24 offensive rebounds by the Volunteers. That, when combined with Tennessee outshooting Arkansas, made for a challenge that they weren’t able to overcome.

“Well, first of all, we only had one guy go to try to offensive rebound. They had more offensive rebounds than we had rebounds,” Calipari said. “I want you to hear what I just said. How did we — all I kept saying in the second half, let’s get it to single digits. If we do something good, they get an offensive rebound. We do something good, they get an offensive rebound. We make it 13, they get two offensive rebounds, two threes. And you look around, like, ‘Guys, it has nothing to do with anything but rebounding.’”

For the season, Arkansas has had its issues rebounding. The Razorbacks are 217th in the country in rebounds per game, averaging 35.71 rebounds per game.

“If I play a smaller team, guards have got to rebound defensively. I don’t need you to offensive rebound, but defensively you got to come up with the ball. So we could play a bigger team with Adou [Thiero] at the three,” Calipari said. “But like I said, he didn’t play well today. He’s probably had one of those this year. So in 14 games, he’s had one other dud. He had it here, couldn’t make a free throw, and then he shoots an air-ball three. That’s not who he is, but give them credit. They made him play that way.”

The schedule doesn’t get easier from here for Arkansas and John Calipari. Ole Miss comes to town on Wednesday before Florida will then make their presence felt on Saturday. Both of those teams are currently ranked in the AP Top 25 Poll. So, fixing the rebounding issue is going to be vital right away.

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