Tennessee Vols morning report: Lady Vols preview Stanford
A wild week involving the Tennessee Vols, with most of the news coming from the football program on the recruiting trail, now leads to what should be a busy weekend. Both basketball programs have huge games coming up.
Our morning update on Rocky Top leads with a preview of one of them, as two people on the women’s basketball side spoke with the media Thursday to discuss what’s coming. Speaking of covering events, we’ll touch on that along with continuing coverage of a diving event.
Beyond those two things, though, there is a bit of football news to get to, including two players earning postseason recognition from a specific organization and one of those players making news elsewhere. We’ll touch on all of this, starting with the Lady Vols.
Kellie Harper talks Stanford – Jack Foster, SI.com
On Saturday, the Tennessee Vols men’s basketball team will take on the Memphis Tigers in Nashville at noon, and the Lady Vols women’s basketball team will face the No. 3 ranked Stanford Cardinal at 5:15 p.m. ET. Kellie Harper talked about her team’s matchup Thursday. Here’s a bit of what she said.
"“I think one thing that we do that allows us to stay levelheaded emotionally before a big game, is our preparation looks pretty similar from game to game, regardless of our opponent. I think keeping that consistency maybe gives our players a little more comfort, and hopefully keeps them from letting the emotions get the best of them.”"
Jordan Walker talks Stanford – Cora Hall, Knoxville News Sentinel
In addition to Harper, Tennessee Lady Vols basketball guard Jordan Walker also met with the media Thursday. Here’s what she said about the expectations going into the game.
"“My feelings about this game are just having a great opportunity to play another amazing team. Just being able to go out and compete with my team.”"
Matthew Butler to play in East-West Shrine game – ShrineBowl.com
Set for Feb. 3, 2022, Tennessee Vols football defensive lineman Matthew Butler has accepted a bid to play in the East-West Shrine Bowl. The official event tweeted out Butler’s acceptance.
"The East-West Shrine Bowl is the longest running college all-star football game in the nation. The East-West Shrine Bowl is an important part of America’s football tradition, giving top college players a chance to showcase their talents to NFL scouts and a national television audience."
Two football Vols earn Academic All-American honors – AcademicAllAmerica.org
The College Sports Information Directors of America named Tennessee Vols punter Paxton Brooks and defensive lineman Matthew Butler to Academic All-American teams. Brooks earned first team for Division I, and Butler earned second team.
"The 2021-22 Academic All-America® Division I Football Team features 14 members with a 4.00 GPA and 22 members with at least a 3.90 GPA as either undergraduate or graduate student-athletes. The 25-member first team have an average GPA of 3.72."
Swimming and diving continues Auburn Invitational – UTSports
One victory and one top 10 finish marked the highlights for the Tennessee Vols men’s and women’s diving program on the second day of the Auburn Invitational. Grace Cable won the 3-meter. Event play resumes Friday and will last through Saturday.
"Cable followed up her second-place finish on the 1-meter Wednesday by winning her seventh event of the year with a score of 321.15 on the 3-meter. The senior was in a tight battle throughout the finals but pulled away after scoring an impressive 61.60 on a Back 2 1/2 Somersault Tuck for her fifth dive."