by design | Mar 21, 2022 | Columnist, Mattingly
By Tom Mattingly In the days and weeks following Knoxville’s 1982 World’s Fair, there was local political wrangling about an arena that finally had Gov. Lamar Alexander hand the UT administration a decree. They had better get their act together —and soon—if they...
by design | Mar 14, 2022 | Columnist, Mattingly
By Tom Mattingly Sometimes the greatest moments in sports commentary come when you least expect them. You can often experience some amazing nuggets of eternal truths that will stick with you forever. “You can hear a lot by listening,” Yogi Berra once said. Lindsey...
by design | Mar 7, 2022 | Columnist, Mattingly
By Tom Mattingly The phone rang, and the caller posed the question succinctly. Who might be among the most fascinating persons you dealt with in all of Tennessee athletics? It only took a few minutes to come up with the answer. Lindsey Nelson was always a delight,...
by design | Feb 28, 2022 | Columnist, Mattingly
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...
by design | Feb 20, 2022 | Columnist, Mattingly, Stories In This Week's Focus:
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....
by design | Jan 17, 2022 | Columnist, Mattingly
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...
