The Big Orange Report Feb. 13, 2025

Vols Climb Back to No. 3


The Tennessee men's basketball team grabbed a pair of victories last week that allowed the team to move up a spot in the national rankings and remain a projected one seed for the NCAA tournament. The Vols knocked off No. 15 Missouri in a hard fought contest 85-81 and then went on the road to easily handle a good Oklahoma team 70-52 to edge up to No. 3 in the polls.  
Tennessee plays at Kentucky on ESPN2 at 6 p.m. On Saturday UT will be looking for more revenge when Vanderbilt comes calling at noon. This game will be televised on the SEC network.
The Lady Vols ended a very long dry spell by knocking off UConn last week. Tennessee had not beaten the Huskies since 2007 since renewing the series four years ago after a span of 13 seasons when the teams did not play. Now two Tennessee coaches have defeated UConn, Pat Summitt and Kim Caldwell.
Softball Explodes Out of the Gate
The Big Orange softball squad played six games in Florida over the weekend. After fielding miscues cost them a chance to beat All American Jordy Bahl and Nebraska, Coach Karen Weekley's team reeled off five impressive wins including four run rule victories in a row. Tennessee beat Bethune-Cookman, Iowa, Notre Dame and No. 20 ranked Northwestern by a final run total of 42-4. The Vols capped the trip with an 8-3 verdict over Pitt.
The pitching staff for this squad may have the most talent and depth in the history of the program. Junior ace Karlyn Pickens has been joined by highly regarded transfer Sage Mardjetko from South Carolina. Two freshmen that were ranked among the top 10 prospects in the nation are also on the staff. Erin Nuwer was tabbed as the No. 7 recruit and Texan Peyton Tanner was No. 4 on the charts. Nuwer earned a spot in the record books by tossing a no hitter against Bethune-Cookman in her first collegiate start.
The SoftVols are off to Louisiana and Texas this weekend for four games in two days.  
Spring Drills on the Horizon
In a little over three weeks, the 2025 edition of Volunteers will begin spring practice. The staff is expecting some interesting competitions for first string and primary backups and several younger players will have an opportunity to "earn their spurs" in March and April. The spring game has been officially set for April 12th in Neyland Stadium.
The offensive line will be one group that will attract a great deal of attention. Coach Glen Elarabee must replace three, maybe four starters but does have two veteran transfers that are among the favorites to nail down a job. Starting left guard Andrej Karic has petitioned the NCAA for another year and thus far there has been no final response.
Coach Josh Heupel will also be giving plenty of attention to the receiving corps that is loaded with young, but very talented players. One of, if not the biggest key at this position is former five star rated recruit Mike Matthews. The athletic and fast Matthews saw some cameo action this past season but the hope is that he is ready to step up and spread his wings this year.
The running back room is stocked with a ton of talent but they are young. Still, Vol watchers do not expect that the loss of Dylan Sampson is going to hurt the run game at all. The Vols have two very capable and experienced players returning at tight end.
On defense, the staff will be looking for depth at defensive tackle, linebacker and safety. Despite losing James Pearce off the edge, the team returns two potential pass rushers that might be able to match or exceed Pearce's production this past season.
Soon we will be taking a more in depth look at individual players that have could become difference makers for this football team next fall.

Coverage of this column brought to you by:




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What A Game! Dyer County beats Dyersburg with PAT in OT

Image
  Jason Peevyhouse Editor, JP Productions Sports With the fanbases from both local schools in attendance and supporting their favorite teams, Dyer County rallied from a seven-point halftime deficit to score twice in the third quarter. But, a late touchdown by the Trojans forced overtime where a special teams became the most important part of the game as the Choctaws blocked Dyersburg’s extra point attempt then were able to score and sophomore DC kicker Jotham Powell hit a PAT for the 35-34 win to open the season. The game marked the first career win for new Dyer County Head Coach Justin Dubruiel. It was also the first win by a Choctaw team at Dyersburg since 2007. “It was good,” Dubruiel said following the win. “It was good for our kids and good for Dyer County. “Whenever you can beat Dyersburg, it’s a fun night for everybody.” Trailing by a touchdown at the half, Dyer County was able to get a stop on defense, forcing a three-and-out. On the ensuing punt, Choctaw juni...
Read more

Trojans headed to Region 7-3A Championship for the first time in 21 years

Image
  Jason Peevyhouse JP Productions Sports Thanks to a stellar second half which saw the Trojans outscore Haywood 45-23, the Dyersburg boys will play for a region championship for the first time since 2004 after the black and gold’s 68-55 win over the Tomcats on Tuesday night in Newbern. "I think our kids were extremely engaged from the tip," Dyersburg Head Coach Blaine Mahaffey said. "I thought we rebounded well all night.  "And then, in the second half, when we were able to play a little bit better offensively, I think it showed up more." Trailing by nine at the break, the Trojans cut it to eight early in the second half but a three-pointer from Haywood put the Tomcats back up 35-24 with just over seven minutes left in the frame. Dyersburg went on a tear after a Breyden Turnage bucket was followed by a layup from AJ Higgins. This opened up four-minute stretch which saw the Trojans outscore Haywood 19-3 and was capped by a Jeff Cobb three-point play and tw...
Read more