by design | Jul 7, 2025 | Columnist, Mattingly
Never a dull moment By Tom Mattingly In this business, Vol fans are always asking intriguing questions – whether it’s on the street, in restaurants, via social media, or on the telephone. There was a postal employee in Chattanooga who called one year and asked who the...
by design | Jun 30, 2025 | Columnist, Mattingly
‘A sackful of gimmicks and a burning desire to succeed’ By Tom Mattingly AUTHOR’S NOTE FOR PERSPECTIVE: This story was first written on June 12, 2007, after news broke a day earlier that Ray Mears (Nov. 8, 1926-June 11, 2007) had died in Knoxville. Much...
by design | Jun 23, 2025 | Columnist, Mattingly
‘Often in error, but never in doubt’ By Tom Mattingly Here’s the question for today. What former Vol quarterback played linebacker in a 1963 freshman game at Kentucky (the Vol rookies lost 70-0), redshirted a year later, and then became a Vol quarterback...
by design | Jun 16, 2025 | Columnist, Mattingly
‘R-E-S-P-E-C-T’ By Tom Mattingly There is respect, and then there’s respect. “R-E-S-P-E-C-T,” as Aretha Franklin sang so many times over the years. Here’s an example. The Tennessee football team was flying home one Saturday night after a game in the late 1980s...
by design | Jun 9, 2025 | Columnist, Mattingly
‘He made his point clearly and moved on’ By Tom Mattingly During Ben Byrd’s career at the Knoxville Journal (1947-91) and in his other published works, there were precious few wasted words. He made his point clearly and moved on. He was also a tenacious defender of...
by design | Jun 2, 2025 | Columnist, Mattingly
‘Merely a way to start the game, nothing more’ By Tom Mattingly There’s nothing like the excitement of the opening kickoff. Is it better to kick or receive? Gen. Bob Neyland and Bowden Wyatt always wanted to let the other team have the ball first. There are...
