SEC hoops on television

  By Tom Mattingly Does anybody remember the basketball games produced by TVS, the early SEC syndicated television package, a highlight of Saturday afternoons in January and February in the 1960s and 1970s, sometimes into March? If you wanted to see SEC hoops on...

The Wizard of Orange

By Tom Mattingly Ray Mears not only made orange a household color in Knoxville, but wherever else Vol fans might have gathered. Orange became a respectable color to wear to the games. He coined the phrase “Big Orange Country,” despite assertions to the contrary....

‘The Long Walk’

By Tom Mattingly The 1968-69 University of Tennessee basketball season finished 21-7 overall and 13-5 (SEC), with an appearance in the NIT. It featured yeoman-like work from Bill Justus, Billy Hann, Bobby Croft, Jimmy England, and Don Johnson. A game at Vanderbilt...

Significant happenings on and off the field

By Tom Mattingly Long-time Tennessee fans remember the 1961 football season for events happening on and off the field. A major highlight on the gridiron was a 10-6 win over No. 9 Georgia Tech on Nov. 11 on Shields-Watkins Field. That happened in the days Tennessee’s...

The New Season

By Tom Mattingly The Vols started the 1974 season 2-3-1. “The 2-3-1 record,” wrote the Knoxville Journal’s Russ Bebb, “brought gloom so thick you could cut it with a knife.” Losses came at Auburn (21-0), at LSU (20-10), and at home against Alabama (28-6). Tennessee...