Hail To The Gridiron

For nearly a quarter century, Bob Kesling has been
the voice of the Tennessee Volunteers. Succeeding his
SPORTS A VIEW FROM ...
mentor, the great John Ward, Bob is also a beloved
Volunteer and one of the best broadcasters in the
business. Whether it’s football or basketball or the
occasional baseball game, he is tremendous. He’s also a
great guy. We always appreciate Bob’s contributions to
Bulldawg Illustrated.
BY JEFF DANTZLER
Knoxville
HEUPEL, HOOKER, THIS
SEASON, TAKE US THROUGH
THESE HIGH TIMES FOR THE
TENNESSEE FAITHFUL?
It has been a heckuva ride. The
first test was at Pittsburgh. It was
the Johnny Majors Classic. Coach
Majors would have loved the game.
The kicking game and plenty of
great defense. Tennessee only
scored three points in the 2nd half
as Pitt forced overtime. Hendon
Hooker teamed up with Cedric
Tillman in overtime to get the win.
It proved Tennessee could beat a
ranked team on the road and the
defense played very well. Then
the big win at home over Florida
holding off the Gators and then
of course Alabama. The Vols have
faced plenty of challenges and have
really been a much improved team
in several positions this season.
THE WIN OVER ALABAMA
IS ARGUABLY THE BIGGEST
SINCE THE UPSET OF
FLORIDA IN 2001, AND
MAYBE THE NATIONAL
CHAMPIONSHIP VICTORY
OVER FLORIDA STATE, HOW
DOES THAT RATE FOR YOU?
Can’t remember a better game,
setting or quarterback battle.
Hendon Hooker and Bryce Young
kept making play after play.
Alabama’s 17 penalties helped
Tennessee’s cause, but in the end the
Vols made more plays to beat Bama.
BEATING FLORIDA, LSU AND
ALABAMA IN THE SAME
SEASON IS A RARE AND
IMPRESSIVE FEAT, TAKE US
THROUGH THESE WINS AND
THE MOMENTUM TENNESSEE
IS RIDING.
This has been a fun ride for the fans
and the players. Fast paced offense
and a much improved defense.
The roster isn’t drastically different
from last year, the players have just
gotten better and are performing at
a higher level. Bru McCoy obviously
is a big addition at wideout, but Jalin
Hyatt is a player, for example, who
had a hard time getting on the field
last year. Now he holds the school
record and tied an SEC record with
five touchdowns catches in a game
against Alabama, no less. Hyatt is a
perfect example of players on how
this roster has improved.
WHAT DOES TENNESSEE
NEED TO DO TO BEAT
GEORGIA?
Continue to find ways to score. It
looks to be a high scoring game.
This will be the best defense
overall Tennessee has faced. Can
Hendon Hooker continue to find
guys running wide open, but this
time against the stellar Georgia
secondary?
WHAT IS YOUR TAKE ON THE
BULLDOGS?
Solid team.The play action pass and
tight ends are tough to cover. This
rebuilt defense is playing better
than most thought it might.
HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO
SEE THE SEC AND SCHEDULE
SET UP DIVISIONS/PODS
WHEN OKLAHOMA AND
TEXAS JOIN THE LEAGUE?
I have not given this a whole lot
of thought. I might when we hear
they are finally going to join the
SEC. I would say that once Texas
and Oklahoma do join the league,
it would be nice to play them more
than once a decade. I would also
hate to see many of the old rivalries
dissolved. However, one must
remember that before the split into
divisions, Tennessee and Florida
weren’t rivals. They hardly played
each other between 1933 and 1991.
We will all adjust somehow when
the SEC figures all of this out.
SO MANY CHANGES IN THESE
LAST COUPLE OF YEARS,
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO
SEE CHANGED?
The games are getting way too
long. Too many reviews that are
causing too many delays. I would
like to see them do away with
stopping the clock after every
first down to mark the ball. The
NFL doesn’t do this. They put the
rule years ago to slow the game
down and allow teams to run more
plays. Now most teams with the up
tempo are running 80-100 plays per
game. That’s plenty. It might save
a few minutes and make the game
run faster. Keep the game moving
and get back closer to three hours
instead of four and a half hours.
THE DAWGS & GOVERNOR KEMP ...
KEEP CHOPPING!!!
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WE ARE THE BEST at what we do!
BULLDAWGILLUSTRATED 24 ISSUE ELEVEN • TENNESSEE