Spring football for Tennessee comes to a close with today’s Orange & White Game at Neyland Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. Eastern Time.
The spring game is not televised but can be streamed live online through SEC Network+, which can be accessed through the ESPN app for smart TVs, computers or other devices, using cable log-in credentials. More SEC Network+ information can be found here. Mark Neely (play-by-play) and Mike Golic Jr. (analyst) will be on the call for SEC Network+.
The game can be heard on radio on The Vol Network’s state-wide affiliates and can be streamed on UTSports.com or the UT Athletics app. The broadcast will begin at 4 p.m. ET.
Free parking is available for fans on Tennessee’s campus (view the parking PDF here).
Offense will wear orange jerseys while the defense will be in white. Normal scoring will apply while the offense alternates possessions. Normal timing will be kept in the first half, before a 10-minute halftime. A running clock will be used in the second half.
Follow the thread below to get all the latest information from GoVols247’s Wes Rucker, Patrick Brown, Ryan Callahan and Grant Ramey in our official game-day thread on The CheckerBoard.
Here’s what first-year Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said last week while previewing today’s game:
“Just collectively as a staff, a football staff and support staff, all of those things, this is our greatest dress rehearsal before we get to next fall. The first two scrimmages we’ve tried to treat like a game in everything that we’re doing for our players to make sure that they’re prepared and understanding how we get ready to go play a football game. The communication system, we try to do the same thing. You’re going to continue to get better and more efficient and more in-sync every opportunity that you get.
“(The) spring game will be a huge opportunity for our staff to grow and make sure that we’re ready to operate efficiently and effectively when we get to next fall and are able to kick off for real inside of that stadium. I like what our group has done up until this point getting everybody on the same page so our players have a great understanding of how we’re going to operate, too.
“Man, what a great opportunity for guys inside of our locker room to go out and compete in front of their fans, go put on a show but also show the improvement that they’ve made, opportunity for them in a real live situation to go earn trust from their teammates, trust from our coaching staff as well and prove that they’re ready to go compete at a championship level and find a way to force us to get them on the field. That’s a player’s job. Excited that we get an opportunity to have the state of Tennessee and Vol nation inside of this stadium. It’s going to be a great day and look forward to seeing everybody there.”
FIRST QUARTER
WHITE 7, ORANGE 0, 12:11/1st: With the Orange and White teams alternating possessions, Tennessee’s second-team offense started the game by going three-and-out on its first series. The Vols’ first-team offense then took over after a punt and marched straight down the field on a nine-play, 70-yard scoring drive that took only 2 minutes, 21 seconds off the clock. Freshman running back Jaylen Wright finished the drive with a 7-yard touchdown run, and USC kicker transfer Chase McGrath connected on the extra point. Sophomore running back Jabari Small rushed for 47 yards on six carries earlier in the drive, and Virginia Tech quarterback transfer Hendon Hooker completed two of his three passes for 23 yards.
ORANGE 7, WHITE 7, 11:28/1st: The Orange team answered the White team’s early score with a big play for a quick touchdown. Sophomore quarterback Harrison Bailey threw an incomplete pass on his first attempt, narrowly overthrowing a downfield pass to fifth-year senior Tanner Dobrucky, before hitting redshirt freshman wide receiver Jack Jancek in stride down the right sideline for a 73-yard touchdown on third-and-8. Toby Wilson‘s extra point tied the score at 7. Redshirt freshman running back Tee Hodge received the carry on the Orange team’s first play of the drive, running for a 2-yard gain.
WHITE 10, ORANGE 7, 9:18/1st: McGrath connected on a 28-yard field goal to end the White team’s second drive. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Brian Maurer quickly moved the White team across midfield with a 45-yard pass to sophomore wide receiver Jalin Hyatt. Three plays later, Maurer ran for a 16-yard gain on third-and-9 to keep the drive alive. But the White team stalled inside the 20-yard line, with senior running back Marcus Pierce being stopped for a 4-yard gain on third-and-12, and McGrath made his first first-goal try to put the White team back in front.
ORANGE 14, WHITE 10, 8:39/1st: Bailey capped off a three-play, 75-yard scoring drive with a 20-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Velus Jones Jr. Small ran for a 3-yard gain to start the drive, and Bailey found Jones downfield for a 52-yard gain on second down to move the Orange team deep into White territory in just two plays. Bailey then threw to a wide-open Jones down the left sideline for his second touchdown pass of the first quarter.
WHITE 17, ORANGE 14, 5:01/1st: Hooker scored his first touchdown to put the White team back in front, rolling to his left and running it in from 4 yards out on third-and-goal to put the finishing touches on an 11-play, 75-yard drive. Redshirt sophomore running back Fred Orr picked up a pair of first downs on the ground early in the drive, running for gains of 22 and 13 yards, and redshirt freshman running back Antonio Malone later added an 11-yard run for another first down. Back-to-back completions by Hooker covering 7 and 8 yards gave the White team another first down at the 5 before Hooker found the end zone on his third-and-goal run.
SECOND QUARTER
ORANGE 21, WHITE 17, 8:34/2ndQ: Maurer’s 3-yard touchdown pass to redshirt sophomore tight end Hunter Salmon on first-and-goal put the Orange team back in front. A deep pass from Maurer to Jancek went for a 64-yard gain on third-and-10, keeping the drive alive and quickly putting the Orange team in position to regain the lead. On the next play, Maurer threw a short pass to a wide-open Salmon off play action for his first touchdown pass of the game.
ORANGE 28, WHITE 17, 6:38/2ndQ: Junior cornerback Warren Burrell intercepted a pass from Hooker along the right sideline and returned it 34 yards untouched, producing the game’s first turnover and adding to the Orange team’s lead. Hooker ran for a 1-yard gain to start the drive before throwing the interception.
ORANGE 28, WHITE 24, 4:33/2ndQ: Small brought the White team back within four, running for a 7-yard touchdown on second-and-3 to complete a seven-play, 75-yard drive that took only 2:03 off the clock. Bailey completed a 14-yard pass to Jones on third-and-9 early in the drive and then found Fant for a 9-yard gain on the next play. Bailey then threw back-to-back passes to sophomore wide receiver Jimmy Calloway, connecting with him for gains of 37 and 6 yards to move inside the 10-yard line. The White team then found the end zone on the second of back-to-back runs by Small.
THIRD QUARTER
ORANGE 35, WHITE 24, 10:15/3rdQ: Junior running back Tiyon Evans, a junior-college transfer who has been limited this spring by an ankle injury, scored on a 1-yard run to finish off an 11-play, 75-yard drive to open the second half. Bailey connected with sophomore wide receiver Andison Coby, another junior-college transfer, across the middle for a 24-yard gain on the first play of the half. Later, Bailey threw back-to-back completions of 7 yards to Coby and 9 yards to redshirt freshman running back Dee Beckwith to move the chains again. A 6-yard run by Beckwith gave the Orange team another first down, and a 9-yard pass from Bailey to Hyatt later moved the chains on third-and-9 before Evans punched it into the end zone on second-and-goal.
FOURTH QUARTER
ORANGE 35, WHITE 31, 12:52/4thQ: Another efficient scoring drive, this one covering 75 yards on eight plays, brought the White team back within four early in the fourth quarter on the second drive of the abbreviated second half. A targeting penalty on sophomore defensive back Doneiko Slaughter early in the drive gave the offense a first down on third-and-6. Two plays later, a 13-yard pass from Maurer to fifth-year senior tight end Princeton Fant moved the chains again. Maurer then found redshirt junior wide receiver Cedric Tillman for a 27-yard gain and hit Fant for a 15-yard gain to the 1 on the final play of the third quarter. On the second play of the fourth quarter, Small scored on a 2-yard run, adding his second touchdown of the day.
ORANGE 42, WHITE 31, 5:52/4thQ: Malone scored on a 1-yard run to make it a two-possession game again in the final minutes. Redshirt sophomore walk-on Spencer Smith came in at quarterback to start the drive, and he provided one of the highlights of the series by connecting with freshman tight end Miles Campbell for an 18-yard completion to the 1, setting up Malone’s touchdown. Orr also ran for gains of 17 and 16 yards on back-to-back plays to start the drive.
ORANGE 42, WHITE 37, 0:54/4thQ: With Hooker back in at quarterback, the White team put together one more scoring drive in the closing minutes to make the final score closer. The game ended on Tillman’s diving, 29-yard touchdown catch in the corner of the end zone on a pass from Hooker, who finished 5-of-5 passing for 69 yards on the drive. Keyton made three catches for 33 yards on the drive, while Tillman made back-to-back catches for a combined 36 yards to end the game. Hooker also had a 3-yard run earlier in the possession, while freshman running back Jaylen Wright had two carries for 3 yards within the first four plays of the eight-play, 75-yard drive.
