Nine years to the day after Appalachian State shocked MI in front of over 100,000 fans in Ann Arbor, the Mountaineers almost did the same at Neyland Stadium to Tennessee, holding a lead for most of the game and pushing the ninth-ranked Volunteers to OT in the season-opener. But at the end of the day, we won the ball game. Faced with fourth down 20 yards from the end zone and needing at least 5 yards to extend the possession, Lamb saw his two intermediate routes covered, so he threw into the end zone, hoping to connect with wide receiver Shaedon Meadors. They’re going to tell me that App State is a tough club, which made a bowl game previous year.
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Hurd carried 28 times for 110 yards and the Tennessee defense allowed just 108 passing yards to key the win. Rushes of 20 and 11 yards from Cox, who finished with 115 yards on 24 carries, set up Lamb’s short touchdown run.
Appalachian State leads 7-3 with 3:20 left in the first.
Had the Mountaineers not missed an extra point in the second quarter, there probably wouldn’t have been an overtime in which Tennessee could salvage the night.
However, Jalen Hurd still managed over 100 yards as the workhorse and recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown, so he showed he’s still an elite running back, even if he had a fumble himself. Combine Cox with sophomore Jalin Moore and junior Terrence Upshaw who combined for another 1,200 yards and eight touchdowns, and you have yourself a pretty daunting running back corps.
Tennessee was able to turn the App State miscue into three points on Medley’s second field goal of the game. When he finally opened up the playbook with a first-down pass, UT turned it into a 67-yard score.
Penn State to honor Paterno’s first game • In two weeks, Penn State will honor the late Joe Paterno on the 50th anniversary of his first game as football coach. “I feel like we put ourselves in position to win, and we just didn’t capitalize when we should have”.
This time the No. 9 ranked Vols scored a game-winning touchdown when quarterback Joshua Dobbs was hit hard and fumbled the ball.
Josh Dobbs has gotten a lot of attention this season for the possibility of being in New York City for the Heisman Trophy that will be awarded in December.
Before the first quarter was up, the Vols lost their top linebacker, Reeves-Maybin, on a targeting penalty covering a punt return.
In the first half the Vols didn’t play like a preseason top 10 team, especially one that was favored by three touchdowns. “We had everything go wrong on us tonight”. If they don’t figure out the Appalachian State Mountaineers in the second half, they’re going to have a tough time convincing fans they deserve the hype. Tennessee: Josh Dobbs 16-29-1-192.
The Vols momentum changed early in the second half as Sutton picked off Lamb’s pass on the opening drive.
So, yes, Tennessee won, and it is 1-0 entering next Saturday night’s showdown with Virginia Tech at Bristol Motor Speedway. In a prime example of the depth that’s been built, Cortez McDowell did a solid job in the senior’s absence, registering a total of nine tackles that tied for the team lead with Darrin Kirkland Jr.
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The university announced plans Thursday to mark the anniversary when the Nittany Lions football team hosts Temple on September 17.
