Tennessee Vols morning report: UT Athletics Hall of Fame, Josh Dobbs
The Tennessee Vols Athletics Hall of Fame, Joshua Dobbs, the season-opener and more preseason talk lead the Volunteers news for Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017.
NFL preseason is finally underway, which gives off the excitement of football season finally being right around the corner. And Tennessee Vols fans are as excited as anybody.
As we get set to bring you the news on Rocky Top today, that preseason is a topic of discussion. We also have to deal with college preseason still, and there was an exhibition game in another sport Wednesday that shows fall sports are underway.
And there’s information on the season-opener against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets to get into that might be a bit exciting.
But we start with something a bit unconventional, and that’s news surrounding prestigious honors that former Vols are set to receive this year.
Eight to be inducted in Tennessee Vols Athletics Hall of Fame – Local 8 Now WVLT
Phillip Fulmer, Monica Abbott, Justin Gatlin, Todd Helton and Gen. Robert Neyland posthumously are among the eight Vols who are set to be inducted into the UT Hall of Fame this year. The other three players are men’s swimmer Jeremy Linn, Women’s track and field competitor Delisa Walton Myricks, and the late men’s swimming coach Ray Bussard.
"The Class of 2017 will be celebrated during the weekend of Oct. 13-14—which coincides with Tennessee’s home football game against South Carolina—and the Hall of Fame activities will include a private induction ceremony on the evening of Friday, Oct. 13. The inductees also will be recognized on the field at Neyland Stadium during the football game the following day."
Josh Dobbs to start Steelers first preseason game -Bob Labriola, Steelers.com
Former Tennessee Vols quarterback Joshua Dobbs will officially start Pittsburgh’s first preseason game Friday night against the New York Giants. Dobbs has been taking reps with the second team behind Ben Roethlisberger in practice due to Landry Jones being hurt.
"The starting nod goes to Dobbs, because Coach Mike Tomlin said today that both Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown will not play against the Giants. And with Jones still nursing an abdominal injury that has prevented him from practicing for several days, the “next man up” is Dobbs."
Tennessee Vols left out of Top 25 in SI preseason rankings – The SI Staff
Tennessee football is in the No. 20 to No. 25 range in most preseason polls for 2017, but a day after being left out of the CBS Sports Preseason Top 25, the Vols are now also out of the SI preseason Top 25. The Texas A&M Aggies took their place as an SEC team. To nobody’s surprise, the Alabama Crimson Tide are No. 1.
"Alabama and Florida State’s season-opening meeting isn’t just the first milestone in 2017’s chase for the College Football Playoff; it’s also a matchup of No. 1 vs. No. 2, if the rankings of the writers and editors at Sports Illustrated are to be believed. The top dogs in this year’s preseason Top 25 should be no surprise: After shipping off another crop of elite talent to the NFL, Alabama is the clear favorite to win its second national championship in three years."
Tennessee Vols season-opener sold out – Chick-fil-A Kickoff game website
The Tennessee-Georgia Tech game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Labor Day is officially a sellout. The two schools will play at 8 p.m. Sept. 4 on ESPN. However, the biggest question is who bought the majority of the tickets? After all, the game is in Georgia Tech’s backyard in Atlanta. But plenty of Vols fans are in the area, and the campus is only three hours away. Either way, this should make for an exciting opener.
"“I can’t think of a better way to officially open the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium than with an ACC-SEC rivalry game in a sold out atmosphere in the Capital of College Football,” said Gary Stokan, CEO and president of Peach Bowl, Inc. “To host two great traditional football powers in Georgia Tech and Tennessee, while also honoring Hall of Famer Bobby Dodd, who was an All-American at Tennessee and a National Championship Coach at Georgia Tech, is a very special way to end the first weekend of college football.”"
Tennessee Vols win soccer exhibition – UTSports
The Tennessee women’s soccer team defeated Wright State Wednesday night 3-0, it’s first home game of the 2017 season. This also helps to kick of the fall sports in Knoxville and really gets things going. It’s a reminder that football season is just days away.
"Junior Danielle Marcano got the scoring started midway through the first of three 30-minute periods. Less than two minutes later, junior transfer Khadija Shaw added a second goal off a long cross, and redshirt senior Ariel Kupritz scored before the first intermission to put the Vols comfortably ahead. Redshirt senior Michele Christy recorded an assist on all three goals."