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"The Volunteer State" Smokey Grey Uniforms Set to Debut
Saturday's contest will mark the debut of the newest edition of Tennessee's Smokey Grey uniforms. "The Volunteer State" uniform, an ode to the state and Tennessee's status as the flagship university, is the second concept of the new Smokey Grey series.
This is the eighth time that the Vols will don Smokey Grey uniforms and the sixth in a Nike version. The Vols also wore Smokey Grey uniforms in 2013 vs. Georgia and Vanderbilt (Adidas), and Nike versions in 2015 (Georgia), 2016 (Florida), 2017 (Georgia), 2022 (LSU) and 2023 (Austin Peay).
For more information on the Vols' Smokey Grey uniforms, click
HERE.
The Neyland Effect
Neyland Stadium is once again one of the nation's most electric environments and toughest places to play for visiting teams. Over the past two seasons, the Vols are 13-1 inside of its confines, outscoring opponents 640-277. In the Josh Heupel era (since 2021), UT is 18-4 at home and has outscored its opponents 961-451 with 15 of those wins coming by double digits. Tennessee's 13 home wins since the start of the 2022 season are tied for third in the nation and tied for first in the SEC with Georgia and Alabama.
Neyland Stadium will be sold out for 14th consecutive game on Saturday afternoon. UT has ranked in the top five nationally in attendance in each of the last two seasons, ranking No. 3 in total attendance (713,405) and No. 4 in average attendance (101,915) while leading the SEC in attendance in 2023.
Vols/Heupel in Season Openers
Tennessee owns a 95-26-6 on-field record all-time in season openers and a 94-26-6 NCAA record in openers (the 2020 opener was vacated by NCAA COI penalty). Josh Heupel is 6-0 in season openers as a head coach, outscoring opponents 313-67. Heupel's UCF squads defeated UConn (56-17 in 2018), Florida A&M (62-0 in 2019) and Georgia Tech (49-21 in 2020). At UT, Heupel is 3-0 in openers with wins over Bowling Green (38-6 in 2021), Ball State (59-10 in 2022) and Virginia (49-13 in 2023).
Nico at the Helm
The Big Orange are one of two SEC teams (South Carolina) starting a redshirt freshman at quarterback in 2024 as Nico Iamaleava takes the reins. Iamaleava, a former five-star recruit from Long Beach, California, will be making his second career start and first in Neyland Stadium. He will be the first freshman quarterback (true or redshirt) to start an opener for the Vols since true freshman Brent Schaeffer did so versus UNLV on Sept. 5, 2004. Schaeffer and fellow true freshman Erik Ainge combined for three scores in that contest.
In his first career start last time out, Iamaleava accounted for four touchdowns (three rushing, one passing) to lead the Vols past Iowa, 35-0, in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl. He became the first Vol freshman quarterback to win a bowl game since Peyton Manning beat Virginia Tech in the 1994 Gator Bowl. Iamaleava tied the UT bowl record with three rushing scores, joining Josh Dobbs (2016 Music City Bowl) and James Stewart (1994 Gator Bowl). For the 2023 season, he was 28-of-45 for 314 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions through the air.
Recapping the 2023 Season
In 2023, Tennessee went 9-4 and 4-4 in SEC play to finish third in the SEC East. The Vols finished No. 17 in both the Associated Press and AFCA Coaches polls and dominated Big Ten West champion, then-No. 17 Iowa, 35-0, in the program's first Citrus Bowl appearance in two decades. It marked the Vols' first shutout victory in a bowl game since beating Texas A&M, 3-0, in the 1957 Gator Bowl. UT was the only SEC program during the 2023 bowl season to shutout an opponent. The Vols were one of only five SEC programs to be ranked in the final 2022 and 2023 polls, joining Georgia, Alabama, Texas and LSU.
