The Volunteer State

Dial back the clock to the 1990s, and Tennessee-Florida ranked among college football's best rivalries.

Phillip Fulmer vs. Steve Spurrier.

Peyton Manning vs. Danny Wuerffel.

The SEC East on the line.

Pandemonium reigns.

The rivalry isn't what it used to be, and the series never had the history of Alabama-Tennessee or Florida-Georgia.

Still, No. 9 Tennessee vs. Florida on Saturday has the feel of a big game – albeit not to the extent of some of those '90s clashes when both teams were ranked.

This series is unlikely to remain an annual rivalry after the SEC expands to 16 teams next year. The game is on the docket for 2024. After that, its future is uncertain. If the game is not among the rivalries the SEC opts to preserve annually, it will continue to be played twice every four years.

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer, Adam Sparks and John Adams rank, from 1 through 10, how much they'll miss this series if it does, indeed, get interrupted. 

They also discuss whether Josh Heupel ought to re-evaluate Joe Milton's status as starting quarterback.

Stay connected on Twitter with Blake (@btoppmeyer) and John (@JohnAdamsKNS) and stay up to date on SEC football news by subscribing to KnoxNews: knoxnews.com/subscribe.

If you're majorly elevating your expectations for Tennessee football after its romp over Virginia, that suggests one of two things: Either you didn't expect much from the Vols initially, for some strange reason, or you're not understanding how bad Virginia is. 

That said, we certainly saw nothing from Tennessee in its 49-13 joyride Saturday in Nashville to make us cool our expectations. We already had a lofty bar set for the Vols. That's unchanged.

The Joe Show looked smooth. So did the run game. The Vols pressured the quarterback, and the pass coverage played to a level to suggest improvement. All good signs. Yes, there's a caveat. It's Virginia.

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer, Adam Sparks and John Adams re-examine their preseason projections for Tennessee and don't waver in their outlook. All signs still point to 9-3 or 10-2.

Later, they debate whether Tennessee should aim to limit Nico Iamaleava to just four games so that he can use this as a redshirt season.

Stay connected on Twitter with Blake (@btoppmeyer) Adam (@AdamSparks) Mike (@ByMikeWilson) and John (@JohnAdamsKNS) and stay up to date on Vols sports news by following @GoVolsXtra. 

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Virginia won three games last season, it was picked to finish last in the ACC this year, and the Cavaliers will start an FCS transfer at quarterback in its season opener against No. 10 Tennessee on Saturday in Nashville.

No wonder the Vols are a 28½-point favorite.

Josh Heupel’s teams are adept at steamrolling mediocre or meek opponents – anyone remember last season’s 56-point win over Vanderbilt? – and this matchup has the makings of a rout.

Not only is this a chance for Tennessee to start 1-0, it’s an opportunity to calm a few lingering concerns.

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer, Adam Sparks and John Adams discuss what they need to see from Tennessee in this opener.

Joe Milton will grab the reins of Tennessee’s offense, but Milton’s performance isn’t an expected area of concern entering the season.

Some areas for UT to address against Virginia: Offensive line stability, pass coverage and pass rush.

Stay connected on Twitter with Blake (@btoppmeyer) Adam (@AdamSparks) Mike (@ByMikeWilson) and John (@JohnAdamsKNS) and stay up to date on Vols sports news by following @GoVolsXtra. 

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Tennessee football will have a new leading receiver this season and a new sacks leader. That much is guaranteed. But, what about rushing yards? Tackles? Will incumbents retain their place on the leaderboard, or will a new stat-stuffer emerge?

Tennessee's season opener against Virginia is less than two weeks away, so we're winding down our final preseason predictions.

On today's episode, Blake Toppmeyer, John Adams and Adam Sparks offer their picks for UT's 2023 leader in receiving yards, rushing yards, sacks and tackles. They also make a prediction specific to Joe Milton's passing total.

Stay connected on Twitter with Blake (@btoppmeyer) Adam (@AdamSparks) Mike (@ByMikeWilson) and John (@JohnAdamsKNS) and stay up to date on Vols sports news by following @GoVolsXtra. 

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Tennessee football has found its starting left tackle, while the Vols search for stability on the interior of the offensive line.

Hype is reaching a crescendo for quarterback Joe Milton, and Dont'e Thornton doesn’t lag far behind as the recipient of preseason hyperbole. And Tennessee’s cogs on defense are apparent.

Those are a few things we’ve learned from Vols preseason practice, with a little more than two weeks remaining until the season opener against Virginia on Sept. 2 in Nashville

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer, Adam Sparks and John Adams review top storylines that have emerged throughout August.

Stay connected on Twitter with Blake (@btoppmeyer) Adam (@AdamSparks) Mike (@ByMikeWilson) and John (@JohnAdamsKNS) and stay up to date on Vols sports news by following @GoVolsXtra. 

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Tennessee football will open the season as a preseason top-10 team for the first time since 2016.

The Vols are ranked No. 10 in the USA TODAY AFCA coaches’ poll. This nod from the coaches speaks to the momentum building within a Tennessee program coming off of its first 11-win season since 2001.
On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams discuss why Tennessee earned this ranking and what it means.

For one, it's a sign of the respect Josh Heupel commands from his coaching peers. More, the Top 25 hints at where the Vols might finish the season.

Stay connected on Twitter with Blake (@btoppmeyer) Adam (@AdamSparks) Mike (@ByMikeWilson) and John (@JohnAdamsKNS) and stay up to date on Vols sports news by following @GoVolsXtra. 

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The Vols are back – on the practice field.

Tennessee's encore to an 11-2 season begins to take shape this week, when preseason workouts begin.

Does Tennessee have the pieces to repeat 11 wins? That's a tall order, but a third straight bowl appearance should be in store, and the Vols are well-positioned to stay No. 2 in the SEC East pecking order, behind Georgia.
On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer, Adam Sparks and John Adams highlight five burning questions to monitor this preseason.

From offensive line to linebackers, they dissect some position battles that will unfold throughout August.

Stay connected on Twitter with Blake (@btoppmeyer) Adam (@AdamSparks) Mike (@ByMikeWilson) and John (@JohnAdamsKNS) and stay up to date on Vols sports news by following @GoVolsXtra. 

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Joe Milton has a band of believers. Despite starting just two games last season, Milton earned third-team preseason All-SEC quarterback recognition. 

Milton's honor roll spot is a credit to his performance in an Orange Bowl victory against Clemson, along with his steady hand as Tennessee's backup quarterback until Hendon Hooker injured his knee in November.

Milton's always had the arm strength, and he showed a complementing poise and touch in the Orange Bowl. Accuracy inconsistencies cost Milton previous starting opportunities at Michigan, then at Tennessee, but that apparently didn't dissuade voters.

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer, John Adams and Adam Sparks weigh in on Milton's preseason recognition and debate whether Milton play his way onto the postseason All-SEC team.

While preseason recognition is nice, it's worth about as much as a Schrute buck. But, if Milton follows in Hooker's path of being an All-SEC performer, that could unlock another New Year's Six appearance for Tennessee.

Stay connected on Twitter with Blake (@btoppmeyer) Adam (@AdamSparks) Mike (@ByMikeWilson) and John (@JohnAdamsKNS) and stay up to date on Vols sports news by following @GoVolsXtra. 

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Two and a half years after Tennessee fired Jeremy Pruitt for cause, the NCAA released its verdict Friday after an investigation into a sloppy recruiting scandal.

For Tennessee, it's good news. The Vols were hit with a few penalties, including an $8 million fine, but spared the dreaded postseason ban. For Pruitt, the sanctions included a six-year show-cause penalty that will further cripple his career.

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer, Adam Sparks and John Adams unpack the NCAA's findings and discuss what the sanctions mean for Tennessee and Pruitt.

This is about the best outcome Tennessee could have hoped for in January 2021, when it fired Pruitt after uncovering what UT Chancellor Donde Plowman described as a "stunning" amount of malfeasance.

While Pruitt got hammered, his former boss, Phillip Fulmer, is not mentioned in the NCAA report. Fulmer's cluelessness became apparent in the investigation, but he was not found to be involved in the scheme.

Pruitt turned the Vols into a mockery, but Tennessee got the last laugh, and the Vols are free to pursue a third straight bowl appearance behind Josh Heupel.

Stay connected on Twitter with Blake (@btoppmeyer) Adam (@AdamSparks) Mike (@ByMikeWilson) and John (@JohnAdamsKNS) and stay up to date on Vols sports news by following @GoVolsXtra. 

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An 11-win season sure did a lot to change the perception – not to mention the compensation – of Tennessee coach Josh Heupel.

This time a year ago, some offseason lists had Heupel pegged in the bottom half of their ranking of SEC coaches. There was an explanation for that. Heupel had just one season of Power Five coaching experience – the Vols finished 7-6 in 2021 – and it remained unclear at that time how he stacked up with some of the conference's top dogs.

No more.

Heupel and his Vols earned victories last season over Alabama's Nick Saban, Clemson's Dabo Swinney and LSU's Brian Kelly. That's a who's who list of college football coaches.
On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer, Adam Sparks and John Adams debate where they'd slot Heupel in a ranking of SEC coaches.

They quibble over where they'd rank Heupel, but they are in consensus that he's a top-five SEC coach.

When was the last time Vols fans could rationally make the claim that Tennessee employed a top-five coach in the nation's best conference? Not anytime recently.

Stay connected on Twitter with Blake (@btoppmeyer) Adam (@AdamSparks) Mike (@ByMikeWilson) and John (@JohnAdamsKNS) and stay up to date on Vols sports news by following @GoVolsXtra. 

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