University of Tennessee Athletics
Saturday's VFL Legend Of Game: Dale Jones
October 22, 2014 | Football
One of the Tennessee heroes of the rivalry with Alabama will serve as Saturday's VFL Legend of the Game on Saturday. Dale Jones will be honored this week.
Jones had his share of greatness as a player at Tennessee. One of the most popular and decorated players in UT history, Jones earned Freshman All-America honors in 1983 and twice was an All-SEC linebacker.
He played for the Vols from 1983-86 and is best known as the defensive leader and heart and soul of UT's 1985 squad that won the SEC title and stunned No. 2 Miami (Fla.) 35-7 in the Sugar Bowl. His point-blank interception of Alabama's Mike Shula late in Tennessee's 16-14 win at Legion Field remains one of the more memorable moments of that run to the championship.
Jones, who grew up just down the road from Knoxville in Cleveland, played on UT teams that went 3-1 against the Crimson Tide.
"For me, every one of those games was always a highlight because I was a kid from Tennessee getting a chance to play Alabama," Jones said. "Being our rival, there was nothing like competing against those guys - especially if you had an opportunity to win.
"It's something that when you're a little kid you always dream about the Tennessee-Alabama football game. For me just to be a part of it was tremendous."
Jones is in his 19th season at Appalachian State. Jones, who has served stints as defensive and special-teams coordinator and defensive-line and linebackers coach during his nearly two decades at App State, is the Mountaineers' inside linebackers coach in 2014.
Jones graduated from UT in 1988 and began his coaching career as an assistant under legendary head coach Johnny Majors at his alma mater in 1989. He went on to serve one-year stints with the Parma Panthers of the Italian American Football League (1990) and the University of Florida (1991) before a five-year tenure at Georgia Military College, including the final four seasons as defensive coordinator.
