All for Tennessee
Fansided

Tennessee Vols morning report: 12 football players graduating early

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 09: Tennessee Volunteers fans cheer during the first half of the game against the Indiana State Sycamores at Neyland Stadium on September 9, 2017 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 09: Tennessee Volunteers fans cheer during the first half of the game against the Indiana State Sycamores at Neyland Stadium on September 9, 2017 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Tennessee Vols football team graduating 12 players early and postgame coverage of the Lady Volunteers win leads our UT news for Thursday, Dec. 12, 2019.

Well, the news has finally died down a bit for the Tennessee Vols. As the fall semester for athletics draws to a close, though, we have a few academic things to cover related to the football program. And winter sports are still in full swing, so it’s not like we have run out of things to cover for all of Vol Nation.

Our morning update on Rocky Top leads with football players graduating early. The ceremony for them is scheduled for tonight, and it’s worth a story recognizing who they are and also analyzing what it means for the program going forward. After all, some of these graduates are likely to be back next year.

Outside of that, though, the postgame of a women’s basketball win that includes a milestone for one player is another point for us to cover. We’re certainly not going to leave that alone. Then we have a former football assistant being hired by a Big Ten school, and it’s enough for us to do a story. But let’s start with the football news.

Football to graduate 12 Vols early – UTSports

On Thursday, the Tennessee Vols football team will have 12 players graduating early. Many will be gone next year, but others are eligible to return for another season since they are either redshirt juniors or, in Brandon Kennedy’s case, seeking a sixth year of eligibility. Kennedy and Riley Lovingood will be earning their master’s degrees.

"Friday’s ceremonies will celebrate Vols finishing their undergraduate studies and includes seniors Marquez Callaway, Carlin Fils-Aime, Jauan Jennings, Brandon Johnson and Darrell Taylor and redshirt juniors Matt Ballard, Andrew Craig, Jarrett Guarantano and Marcus Tatum. Of the 12 players graduating this semester, seven are eligible to return next season. That list includes Kennedy and Guarantano."

Coaches, players speak after Lady Vols beat CSU – Maria Cornelius, GoVols247

Coming off a loss to the Texas Longhorns, the Tennessee Lady Vols scored a 79-41 win over the Colorado State Rams Wednesday. Rennia Davis scored her 1000th career point. Along with Kellie Harper, Davis joined Jazmine Massengill, Jordan Horston, Rams head coach Ryun Williams and Rams player Megan Jacobs as players who spoke after the game. Here’s a bit of what Harper said.

"“I thought we could’ve easily come in this game and played it very similar offensively to Texas. For Texas, I thought we quick-shot the basketball. I thought we shared the basketball and moved it around. I’m really proud of our team.”"

Former UT OC hired by Northwestern – NUSports.com

Mike Bajakian, who was the Tennessee Vols’ football offensive coordinator under Butch Jones in 2013 and 2014, has been hired by the Northwestern Wildcats to serve as their offensive coordinator. Bajakian left UT in 2015 and was most recently OC for the Boston College Eagles this past year. Jones replaced him with Mike DeBord.

"Prior to his time in Boston, Bajakian spent four seasons as quarterbacks coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In his debut season with the Bucs, Bajakian and rookie quarterback Jameis Winston piloted Tampa Bay’s offense to a Top-5 finish in the NFL and the most yards in team history. Winston set team rookie records for passing yards, passing touchdowns, pass attempts, pass completions and passer rating."

Home/Tennessee Volunteers