 | | Defensive end Omari Hand is one of 20 UT seniors playing their final home game Saturday against Kentucky. | THE SERIES
Tennessee and Kentucky are meeting for the 98th time in UT's most played rivalry. * The Volunteers hold a 65-23-9 series lead over the Wildcats. The Vols have won the last 17 meetings in the series dating back to 1985, and eight straight over the Wildcats in Knoxville. * Tennessee's win streak is the longest in the history of the series. Kentucky's last win over UT came in 1984, a 17-12 decision in Knoxville. Head coach Phillip Fulmer is a perfect 9-0 against Kentucky. * Today's regular season finale with Kentucky marks the first time since 1944 that the Vols have concluded their campaign with the Wildcats. * Tennessee has scored more than 50 points in five of the last six meetings. During that stretch, the Vols have outscored the Wildcats, 327-138. Eight of the last 10 meetings have been decided by 21 points or more. TENNESSEE AT A GLANCE
* The Tennessee Volunteers won back-to-back games for the first time since defeating Rutgers (Sept. 28) and Arkansas (Oct. 5) with a 24-0 shutout of Vanderbilt. * It was the 20th consecutive win over Vanderbilt while marking the second straight shut out of the Commodores. The last time UT blanked Vanderbilt in back-to-back years was 1962-63. * The win moved head coach Phillip Fulmer into a tie for sixth with Georgia's Wallace Butts (1939-60) on the SEC's all-time conference game victory list with 67. Fulmer is 67-17 (.798) all-time against conference foes. | WINNINGEST DIVISION I PROGRAMS (Since 1997)
Team W-L Pct | | 1. Marshall 62-13 (.827) | | 2. Florida State 61-14 (.824) | | 3. Nebraska 62-14 (.816) | | 4. Miami 56-14 (.800) | | 5. TENNESSEE 59-15 (.797) | | 5. Kansas State 59-15 (.797) | Cedric Houston posted his fourth straight 100-yard rushing game with 140 yards and one touchdown. Jabari Davis added his team-leading ninth score while Alex Walls booted home three field goals. The Vols also topped 200 yards rushing for the third time in the last four games, rushing for a season-high 242 yards. Casey Clausen returned to the starting lineup after missing the Mississippi State game. He completed 12 of 22 passes for 120 yards. The Vol defense forced two turnovers, including an interception by Mark Jones, while limiting the Commodores to 196 total yards with just 79 passing. It is the second time in the last four games Tennessee held an opponent to under 100 yards passing (South Carolina - 45). UT went 4-2 during the first half of the season, going 3-1 at home, 1-0 at a neutral site and 0-1 on the road. The Vols are 3-2 in the second half with three road wins at South Carolina, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt coupled with two straight home losses to Alabama and Miami. Tennessee is a plus six in turnover margin in its seven wins and a minus four in its four losses. All four losses have been to ranked teams. The Vols have been on the plus side in turnovers four times (Wyoming +4, Rutgers +1, S. Carolina +1, Vanderbilt +2), while being even five times (MTSU, Florida, Georgia, Miami, Mississippi State). Tennessee will be going for its 14th consecutive eight-win season in the regular season finale against Kentucky. The Vols are also seeking their fifth conference victory which would mark the 14th straight season with at least five league wins. VOLS IN NOVEMBER
Complete November Results Since 1985
UT is 67-4 mark in the month of November since 1985. The Vols are 38-2 at home and 29-2 on the road, and have won 11 of their last 12. In SEC play, Tennessee is 49-1 during the month. SENIOR DAY FOR 20 VOLUNTEERS
The Kentucky game will be senior day for 20 Tennessee Volunteers. The Vols will bid farewell to nine fifth-year and five four-year seniors who helped lead the team to three straight bowl games, a Southeastern Conference Eastern Division title and a 36-13 record. UT has not lost a home season finale since 1984 (17-12 vs. Kentucky).  | | Cedric Houston | HOUSTON'S
CAREER 100-YARD GAMES | 1. 149 Yards (32 att.)
at Mississippi State - 2002 | 2. 140 Yards (25 att.)
at. Vanderbilt - 2002 | 3. 111 Yards (14 att.)
vs. Miami - 2002 | 4. 108 Yards (30 att.)
at South Carolina-2002 | 5. 106 Yards (10 att.)
vs. Wyoming-2002 | HOUSTON TOPS 100 IN FOURTH STRAIGHT GAME
For the fourth time in the last four games, Cedric Houston topped 100 yards rushing with the second-best rushing game of his career, a 140-yard effort against Vanderbilt with one touchdown. Not since Travis Henry in 2000 has a Tennessee back posted four straight 100-yard rushing games. The last to have at least five straight was Jay Graham in 1995 who had nine. Houston posted a career-best 149 yards against Mississippi State on a career-high 32 carries and two scoring runs of 34 and 10 yards. He gained 111 yards the previous week against Miami which bettered the 108 yards on 30 carries against South Carolina. His 30 rushing attempts against the Gamecocks more than doubled his season total of 29 carries he had entering the contest. It was the most significant action he had seen since rushing 13 times for 74 yards against Middle Tennessee. He then suffered a number of injuries over the next five games limiting him to just three carries for 16 yards. Over the last four games he has carried the ball 101 times for 508 yards (127.0 ypg) with three touchdowns and a 5.0 average per carry. He leads the Vols and ranks eighth in the SEC with 704 yards (70.4 ypg) on 130 attempts with a 5.4 yard per carry average. He has five runs over 20 yards this season, scoring on three of them (28 & 46 vs. Wyoming, 34 vs. MSU).His career-long run of 74 yards came versus Miami on the game's second play.
 | | Casey Clausen | | UT CAREER PASSING LEADERS | | 1. Peyton Manning - 11,201 | | 2. Andy Kelly - 6,397 | | 3. CASEY CLAUSEN - 6,322 | | 4. Jeff Francis - 5,867 | | 5. Tee Martin - 4,592 | | UT CAREER TOTAL OFFENSE LEADERS | | 1. Peyton Manning - 11,020 | | 2. Andy Kelly - 6,427 | | 3. CASEY CLAUSEN - 6,271 | | 4. Jeff Francis - 5,900 | | 5. Tee Martin - 5,207 | ACTIVE NCAA
STARTING QB WINS
(by percentage/min. 20 wins) | 1. Ken Dorsey
Miami (Fla.) - 35-1 (.972) | 2. Chris Simms
Texas - 24-6 (.800) | 3. Casey Clausen
Tennessee - 23-6 (.793) | 4. Dave Ragone
Louisville - 27-9 (.750) | 5. Byron Leftwich
Marshall - 26-9 (.742) | CLAUSEN AIMS FOR NO. 2 ON UT PASSING LIST
Casey Clausen needs 76 yards passing to move into second place on UT's career passing list. He currently sits in the No. 3 slot with 6322 yards, behind Andy Kelly's (1988-91) 6397 yards. Clausen has 506 career completions, eight shy of Kelly's second place total of 514. Clausen ranks third all-time in completion percentage among SEC signal-callers with 300 completions at 63.6 percent (506-795). He trails former Kentucky quarterbacks Tim Couch at 67.1 and Dusty Bonner at 65.3.
In addition, Clausen is 16th on the SEC's career touchdown passes list with 46. He needs just four more TD passes to become one of 16 league quarterbacks with at least 50 scoring strikes, while nine have at least 60. He ranks third behind former UT quarterback Peyton Manning and Georgia's Eric Zeier in lowest percentage of interceptions at 2.642. Manning had a 2.39 interception percentage, while Zeier posted a 2.639 mark.
His accounted for both Vol scores in the win over South Carolina (1 rush, 1 pass), giving him responsibility for 50 touchdowns in his career, two shy of entering the SEC's top 20. CLAUSEN CONTINUES AS ONE OF SEC'S TOP QBS
Casey Clausen, who sat out the Georgia game with a sore left shoulder, missed the second half of the Miami game and the Mississippi State contest with an ankle injury, has been an efficient leader for the Vols. In his first five games, he was 110-of-162 (67.9%) for 1361 yards (272.2 ypg) with eight touchdowns and three interceptions, averaging 251.4 ypg of total offense. Over his last four games he is 48-of-85 (56.5%) for 519 yards (129.8 ypg) with one touchdown and three interceptions. Clausen leads in the SEC in completion percentage (63.97) while ranking fifth in passing efficiency (135.01), third in completions per game (17.6) and fourth in total offense (209.8 ypg). Nationally, he is seventh in completion percentage, 23rd in passing efficiency, 50th in total offense and 36th in completions. COLQUITT NAMED RAY GUY AWARD SEMIFINALIST
Dustin Colquitt was named one of 10 semifinalists for the Ray Guy Award which is given to the nation's top punter. He is one of five punters in the SEC and 13 nationally to average 43.0 yards per punt. Colquitt ranks 13th nationally and fifth in the SEC with his booming average of 43.0 yards per kick. He has averaged over 41 yards per punt nine times, including a career-best 47.8 yard average against Alabama with a 62 yarder. He had a career-long 68-yarder versus Miami, while punting 10 times for a 42.8 yard average with three 50-yard kicks. He has 13 punts of 50 yards or better, including eight in the last five games. In fact, Colquitt has had at least one 50-yard punt in eight of the last nine games. Twenty-one times his punts have landed inside the opponent's 20-yard line and 13 times inside the 10. In addition, the Vols rank fourth in the NCAA and second in the SEC in net punting at 38.8 yards. JASON WITTEN SETS TIGHT END RECEIVING MARK
Jason Witten hauled in two passes for 20 yards against Vanderbilt and set UT's single-season tight end receiving yardage mark with 434 yards, breaking Jeff Smith's 1984 total of 416 yards. Witten needs just two more catches to break Ken DeLong's 1968 single-season reception mark of 34.
Witten is the only Vol to make at least one catch in every game. He leads UT in catches with 33 and receiving touchdowns with five while ranking second in yards with 434. Over the last seven games he has 18 catches for 268 yards (14.9 ypc) and three scores. Witten has made at least three catches in six of the 11 games, with a season-high six against Florida and South Carolina. He led UT with 72 yards receiving versus the Gamecocks and recorded 78 yards in receiving, including the game-winning touchdown against Arkansas. He had registered a TD catch in three straight games (Rutgers, Arkansas, Georgia), with his first coming versus Middle Tennessee. NOTING THE DEFENSE
* Tennessee ranks third in the SEC in total defense at 296.1 ypg and fifth in rushing defense at 129.9 ypg ... The Vols have held five of their last six opponents to 300 or fewer yards of total offense ... Eight times this season, UT has held opponents to under 300 yards total offense ... Opponents are averaging 287.0 ypg and just 4.6 ypp over the last six games ... UT is tied for seventh nationally with 21 touchdowns allowed ... UT has yielded nine rushing TDs over the last seven games ... Over the last five games, the Vols have given up 154.2 yards per game rushing, 4.2 yards per rush and six scores ... They have held just three opponents to under 100 yards rushing (Wyoming - 43, Florida - 94, Georgia - 62).
* Tennessee is fourth in the SEC and 11th nationally in pass defense, allowing 166.2 ypg ... UT has held seven opponents under 200 yards passing, and two under 100 (S. Carolina - 45, Vanderbilt - 79) ... The Vols have allowed just nine passing touchdowns which ties Alabama and Auburn for the SEC lead and seventh nationally ... The Vols have 12 interceptions on the season which is sixth in the SEC ... UT has intercepted six passes over the last six games ... The three picks versus Gamecocks matches the season high against Wyoming ... UT also had two against Florida. FULMER GETS 100TH VICTORY VERSUS SOUTH CAROLINA
Phillip Fulmer picked up his 100th career victory with an 18-10 triumph at South Carolina Nov. 2. He became the 11th-fastest coach to reach 100 victories in 123 games. Fulmer also tied Texas A&M's R.C. Slocum as the fifth-fastest to reach 100 wins in terms of longevity in his 11th season and eighth game, trailing only Oklahoma's Barry Switzer and Bud Wilkinson, Chicago's Amos Alonzo Stagg and Nebraska's Tom Osborne. Fulmer is the only active coach with a minimum of 10 years as a head coach who ranks in top 15 all-time winning percentage list among Division I-A coaches. His .810 winning percentage is 11th. He is one of only 12 Division I-A coaches with an .800 winning percentage under that standard. Fulmer is the 14th SEC coach to reach 100 wins and ranks 14th on the league's all-time coaching victories list. He needs two wins to tie current Tennessee Athletics Director Doug Dickey (Tennessee/Florida) for 13th. SCORING STREAK
Tennessee has scored in 107 consecutive games, dating back to a 31-0 shutout by Florida in Knoxville in 1994. UT's home scoring streak is 55 contests, while it has scored in 123 straight games away from Neyland Stadium. The last road shutout was by Georgia in 1981, 44-0. UT had scored a TD in 104 straight games until the streak was snapped in a 26-3 loss to Miami Nov. 9, 2002. ORANGE ZONE EFFICIENCY
Tennessee has picked up its efficiency when inside the opponent's 20-yard line over the last eight games, scoring on 23 of its last 27 possessions (14 TDs, 9-10 FGs). For the season, UT has scored on 33 of 42 occasions (78.6%) with 21 touchdowns. The Vols made five trips into the orange zone in seven of the 11 games, while entering just once against Georgia and Miami, twice versus Miss. State and three times versus Alabama. They have missed four field goals, turned it over twice on downs, thrown one interception, lost one fumble and once at the half. In the first five games, UT scored on 19 of 25 Orange Zone possessions compared to 14 of 17 in the last six. Of the 30 offensive touchdowns Tennessee has scored, 21 have come from inside the orange zone. AGAINST THE SEC
Tennessee is 70-20 in SEC since divisional play began in 1992, including a 2-1 mark in the SEC Championship game. Against the Eastern Division, the Vols are 42-12, going 21-5 at home and 21-7 on the road. They have won 22 of their last 28 over Eastern teams, 12 of the last 15 at home and 11 of their last 14 road tilts. Versus the Western Division, Tennessee is 28-8, going 13-4 at home, 12-3 on the road and 3-1 at neutral sites. They have won 23 of their last 27 against Western opponents, including 11 of 12 at home and nine of the last 11 road games. 18 STARTERS MISS TIME DUE TO INJURY
Entering the Kentucky game, Tennessee has had 18 starters miss a total of 58 games due to injury. Nine defense starters, eight offensive starters and one kicker have all spent time on the disabled list. FIRST TIME ACTION
Tennessee has seen 24 student-athletes play their first game, while 14 true freshmen have played.
* Eighteen players have made their first career starts at some point this season; nine on offense and nine on defense. They are TB Houston, TB/FB Davis, FB Fleming, WRs Scott, Fagan, Wade and Brown, QB Leak, DT's Veal, Franklin, DE's Dickerson, Neal, LB's Peace, Simon and DB's Mark Jones and Wilson.
* There are also 24 players who played in their first game. They included: DB's Wilson, Benton, Boulware, Heath, WR's Fagan, Wade, Reed, Fayton, LB's Simon, J. Mitchell, M. Mitchell, DE Holmes, Saint Preux, Dickerson, RB Williams, Revill, C Newsome, PK Newman, QB Banks, Leak, OT Gandy, OG Dumont, TE Finlayson, DS Adam Miles.
* Fourteen true freshmen have seen action this season. They are DB Allen, QB Banks, DE's Mapu, Hall, LB's Haralson, Gaither, M. Mitchell, TE Kirkland, RB Riggs, OG Smith, OT Douglas, DT G. Jones, WR's Hannon, Wade. REGGIE WHITE TO COLLEGE HALL OF FAME
Official Release | White Comes Home
Former University of Tennessee defensive tackle Reggie White (1980-83) has been named to the National Football Foundation's College Football Hall of Fame, Division I-A Class of 2002. He becomes the Tennessee's 18th member of the College Hall.
White was captain of the 1983 Vol squad and was an All-America and All-SEC selection that season. He was the SEC Player of the Year in 1983 and was the Atlanta Touchdown Club's Player of the Year, the Birmingham Touchdown Club's Most Outstanding Senior and the Birmingham Monday Morning Quarterback Club' Most Outstanding Lineman that season. He holds school records for career sacks with 32 and season sacks with 15 in 1983.
He played professionally for the Memphis Showboats of the USFL (1984-85), the Philadelphia Eagles (1985-92) and the Green Bay Packers (1993-98). He led the Packers to a win in the 1998 Super Bowl.
Induction ceremonies will be held Dec. 10 in New York City at the Foundation's annual Awards Banquet at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. | 
