Tennessee Vols morning report: New option for football tickets, Rick Barnes interview
The Tennessee Vols adding a new option for football tickets and Rick Barnes doing a radio interview lead our Volunteers news for Thursday, May 16, 2019.
We’ve reached the midpoint for the month of May, and the Tennessee Vols are still loaded with news all over the place. And that doesn’t just include scheduled events, recaps and weekly awards, although those are part of it.
Our morning update on Rocky Top today leads with a story of a new football ticket option for the Fall. Following that, we have a link to an interview that Rick Barnes did on Wednesday. Another men’s basketball story involves the transfer destination of another player.
Finally, we have a baseball award and series preview to bring you, and there’s a men’s golf recap to cover, one that’s a bit of a downer for UT. However, since the information is pertinent, we’re going to lead with the football ticket news.
‘Vol Pass’ option announced for football tickets – Grant Ramey, GoVols247
The Tennessee Vols announced a new option for football tickets Wednesday. Fans can purchase a ‘Vol Pass’ option for $280 and receive a ticket to every home game. The catch is that the seats will be different each time.
"Tennessee opens at Neyland Stadium on Aug. 31 against Georgia State. The Vols will host BYU on Sept. 7 and Chattanooga on Sept. 14 before starting the SEC home schedule against Georgia on Oct. 5. Other SEC home games include Mississippi State (Oct. 12), South Carolina (Oct. 26) and Vanderbilt (Nov. 30)."
Rick Barnes discusses rules changes, NBA combine – Sports Talk, WNML
Tennessee Vols men’s basketball head coach Rick Barnes went on Sports Talk WNML radio Wednesday afternoon with John Wilkerson and Jimmy Hyams. Barnes first discussed his support of some of the rules change proposals, including moving back the three-point line, expanding replay allowing coaches to call timeouts off the bench, and resetting the shot clock to 20 seconds off an offensive rebound. He was mixed on paying players for their likeness, and he also discussed the NBA combine like expecting Jordan Bone to stay in the draft. Here’s a bit of what Barnes said about all three guys at the combine, including Bone, Grant Williams and Admiral Schofield.
"“What I’m proud of is the fact that, our guys, there’s no magic dust that we had that we could have sprinkled on them. They’ve come in, they’ve worked hard and they’ve shown there’s a lot of different ways to get to that level.”"
Derrick Walker transfers to Nebraska – Chris Heady, Omaha.com
Former Tennessee basketball forward Derrick Walker announced his transfer destination on Twitter Wednesday. With two years of eligibility left, he will be joining Fred Hoiberg and the Nebraska Cornhuskers.
"Walker — a 6-8 forward from Kansas City — played in 30 games off the bench last season for Tennessee. He averaged 5.3 minutes, 0.8 points and 1.1 rebounds per game as a sophomore and 1.9 points and 2.2 rebounds as a freshman. Out of high school, Walker was ranked the No. 66 power forward and No. 2 player in Missouri."
Tennessee baseball hosts Ole Miss – UTSports
The No. 23 ranked Tennessee Vols baseball team will host its final regular season series of the year beginning Thursday against the No. 15 ranked Ole Miss Rebels. At 36-17 and 12-15 in the SEC, UT will met with Ole Miss on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
"The Rebels hold a 10-game lead in the all-time series and have gotten the better of the Vols in recent years. Ole Miss has won seven of the last 10 games between the two programs, including taking two of three games in last year’s series in Oxford."
Garrett Stallings makes SEC Community Service Team – SECSports
Tennessee junior pitcher Garrett Stallings was named to the 2019 SEC Baseball Community Service Team. Stallings’s community efforts add to his accomplishments on the field with a 3.46 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP and a 7-3 record.
"The Virginia native has racked up over 100 hours of community service during his time at Tennessee, volunteering his time to a variety of different causes and organizations including but not limited to: The East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, Pedal for Alzheimer’s, the Knoxville Challenger League, Race Against Racism and the VOLeaders Academy. As a member of the 2017-18 VOLeaders Academy class, Stallings was one of 19 Tennessee student-athletes that had the opportunity to visit Ecuador last summer as part of the program’s year-end cultural exchange trip that aims to provide applied leadership and service opportunities focused on community development and social change through sport."
Men’s golf misses out on NCAA Championships – Brentley Romine, Golf Channel
The Tennessee Vols men’s golf team came in at No. 6 in the Athens site of NCAA Regionals. They missed the fifth spot by three strokes, shooting 21-over par.
"The NCAA Division I men’s golf regionals concluded Wednesday at six sites across the country: Palouse Ridge (Pullman, Wash.), UT Golf Club (Austin, Texas), Stanford Golf Course (Stanford, Calif.), University of Louisville Golf Club (Louisville, Ky.), University of Georgia Golf Course (Athens, Ga.) and TPC Myrtle Beach (Myrtle Beach, S.C.). The top five teams and the top individual not on advancing teams in each regional moved on to the NCAA Championship, which begins May 24 at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark."