Tennessee
RHP AJ Russell Is Inactive For Tennessee Baseball During Knoxville Regional | Rocky Top Insider
Tennessee right-handed pitcher AJ Russell is not active for this weekend’s Knoxville Regional, head coach Tony Vitello confirmed following the Vols’ 9-3 victory over Northern Kentucky on Friday night.
“No, he is not active,” Vitello said postgame. “Probably will get looked at again. We haven’t fast-forwarded there but just based on playing catch there is no need to battle the soreness factor. That is step one and step two would be make sure he is good to go and should be throwing at all.”
Vitello wouldn’t go as far as saying that they would shut Russell down for the rest of the season, just that they were going to reevaluate things after the right-handed pitcher is looked at again.
Russell missed nearly two months with forearm soreness before returning to the mound in a pair of one inning outings at the SEC Tournament last week. The sophomore pitcher worked around a pair of baserunners to post a scoreless inning against Vanderbilt before allowing a solo home run in an inning against LSU.
While the results were solid, Russell’s velocity was way down. After throwing in the upper 90s earlier this season, Russell’s fastball was 91-93 mph in Hoover.
More From RTI: Tennessee Baseball Knocks Off Northern Kentucky To Open Up NCAA Tournament
“What he did for us on Sunday was great,” Vitello said. “I think it was obvious with his couple outings he did give us that he hadn’t really been what his best version of himself is since Texas Tech (season opener).”
Russell suffered side soreness in his second start of the season against Albany before returning for two weeks early in SEC play before the forearm issue reared its ugly head. The right-handed pitcher’s status has been a cloud looming over the team all season due to his extreme talent.
“If anything, I think it alleviates the cloud − for these guys, too, and not just him but also us − (of) what is, what isn’t,” Vitello said. At least we are on one side of the fence or the other. Everyone knows we would rather be fully on the other.”
In Russell’s absence, Tennessee’s pitching staff has stepped up in a major way. Russell’s injury seemed like a near death sentence for the Vols when it happened but a number of players— most notably AJ Causey and Aaron Combs— have stepped up in a big way in his absence.
They’ll look to keep doing so as Tennessee resumes Knoxville Regional play on Saturday night when they face Indiana at 6 p.m. ET at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Tennessee
Deputies perform ‘life-saving measures’ after 5-year-old falls into swimming pool in Tennessee
FAYETTEVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – A Tennessee sheriff’s office is asking the community to pray for a family whose 5-year-old was hospitalized after falling into a swimming pool.
The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said deputies and family members were “administering life-saving measures” Thursday afternoon after pulling the child out of the water.
The child was then transferred to a hospital, where they are still being treated.
“The child was subsequently transported to the hospital, where they are currently receiving medical care‚” said a Facebook post from the sheriff’s office. “Out of respect for the family’s privacy, no further details will be released at this time.”
Copyright 2025 WSMV. All rights reserved.
Sam Purcell felt good about the game plan for Mississippi State women’s basketball’s matchup with Tennessee.
But the Bulldogs gave up 26 points in the first quarter and trailed by seven points. It was a deficit they never recovered from in a 90-80 loss to the Lady Vols at Humphrey Coliseum on Jan. 8.
“You look at that that first quarter, I thought it was crucial. We had a great scout, a great game plan, but we didn’t talk on ball screens,” Purcell said. “Their largest quarter was that first quarter, and we’re going to watch back and go, dang it, we need to be more vocal. And you got to give them credit – top to bottom, they’re probably as good as anybody in the country with athleticism. So you can’t let those athletic kids turn the corner for wide open layups, and we did.”
Kharyssa Richardson and Madison Francis led the Bulldogs with 22 points each, but MSU didn’t have enough defense to pull off the upset.
Had Mississippi State been able to slow down Tennessee’s drivers in the first quarter, it may have been a different result. But once the Bulldogs started slowing that down, the Lady Vols were “phenomenal hitting some big-time shots,” Purcell said.
Tennessee only had the edge in points in the paint, 42-40, but it also went 10-for-27 on 3-pointers, which was an area Mississippi State couldn’t match. The Bulldogs shot 2-for-13 from deep.
MSU also couldn’t stop Tennessee freshman point guard Mia Pauldo, who scored a game-high 26 points on 8-for-12 shooting. The Bulldogs sent her to the foul line time and time again, and she went 8-for-9 on free throws.
“I thought (Pauldo) was poised, she was clutch,” Purcell said. “Obviously, that’s what you need in games like this that are gonna come down the to the wire. You need players to step up, and I thought she was the X factor for them.”
The Tennessee Volunteers have been one of the main teams when it comes to producing talent and sending talent to the NFL, which is something that has often been discovered as a standard for the football program. This is something that has been going on for quite some time and isn’t anything new to the news cycle, as the Vols have been able to produce plenty of talented prospects.
Tennessee is the home of many stars, including some of the best defensive players in SEC history. Guys like Eric Berry have found their way through the Tennessee program and onto the NFL, where they would have legendary careers. However, the defensive side of the football is the only side that has produced plenty of talent, as Tennessee has produced a lot of offensive talent as well. With the likes of Peyton Manning and company, the Vols have shown a great track record in getting talent drafted.
The Vols have produced someone who could be considered as one of the best players to play the Tide end position, as the Knoxville, Tennessee program is the home to Dallas Cowboys legend, Jason Witten. Witten is someone who made the most of his career and has been viewed as a top player at the Tide in position, and someone who is often referred to as a legend for the Cowboys, along with being a legend in the game of football as a whole.
Jason Witten Accepts TE Coach Position For Oklahoma
Witten is now taking a new gig, which has him in a huge role inside the Southeastern Conference. The Vols legend is now the tight end coach for the Oklahoma Sooners. The Sooners have had some success out of their tight ends in the past, but the sky is the limit with a guy like Witten coaching up the players. Witten has the opportunity to do really well, as coaching tight ends won’t be an issue, and you have to imagine that he will be able to recruit very well, considering he has a huge name around him, as this is something that we have seen from positional coaches as well as head coaches who have done great work in the league. You have to imagine that the Vols will now have stiff competition for his son, Cooper, who is a five-star recruit for the upcoming 2027 class at the linebacker position.
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