UT at VU Halftime Notes

Nov. 29, 2014

UT-VU_Halftime_Notes 

HALFTIME NOTES

TENNESSEE TIDBITS

At the half, Tennessee leads Vanderbilt, 17-10.
Teams coached by Butch Jones are 49-3 with leading at halftime.
With a lost coin toss to Vanderbilt, the Vols have now lost 16 of their last 18 flips in regulation play.

TENNESSEE CAPTAINS

#11 Joshua Dobbs, #54 Jordan Williams and #56 Curt Maggitt represented the Vols for the pregame coin toss.

FIRST CAREER STARTS FOR UT

Tennessee started six true freshmen against Vanderbilt: #1 Jalen Hurd (TB), #4 Vic Wharton (WR), #9 Derek Barnett (DE), #44 Jakob Johnson (LB), #73 Jashon Robertson (RG) and #82 Ethan Wolf (TE).
#4 Vic Wharton made his first career start at wide receiver, in place of #18 Jason Croom, against Vanderbilt. Wharton marks the 11th true freshman to make a start on offense or defense for Tennessee this year (12th including kicker #25 Aaron Medley).
#4 Wharton was the seventh true freshman to start on offense for UT this year: #1 Jalen Hurd, #3 Joshua Malone, #4 Vic Wharton, #55 Coleman Thomas, #73 Jashon Robertson, #80 Daniel Helm and #82 Ethan Wolf (TE).
#4 LaTroy Lewis made his first career start against the Commodores on defensive line, in place of #50 Corey Vereen.

OFFENSE

#11 Joshua Dobbs rushed for 59 yards on 11 attempts with one touchdown in the first half, while he was also 6-of-12 for 59 yards passing against Vanderbilt.
#15 Marlin Lane rushed for 25 yards on nine carries in the first half.
With less than three minutes left in the half, Dobbs connected with #2 Pig Howard for a 33-yard pass, putting UT on Vanderbilt's 16-yard line. Howard led the receiver unit in the first half with three catches for 47 yards.
With a 36-yard successful field goal attempt in the first quarter, #25 Aaron Medley tied for fifth-most field goals made in a single season (19) with Jeff Hall (1998) and Greg Burke (1990) on Tennessee's all-time list.
Tennessee's 94-yard offensive drive on their final possession before the half was the longest for the Vols this season.

HOW THEY SCORED

#23 Cameron Sutton returned a punt 76 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter, putting the Vols on the board first in the contest. The return marked Tennessee's first true punt return for a touchdown since Cordarrelle Patterson returned a punt 81 yards for a touchdown against Vanderbilt on Nov. 17, 2012. Prior to his 76-yard touchdown return, Sutton had 72 total yards on 11 returns so far this season.
#25 Aaron Medley made a 36-yard field goal in the first quarter, giving the Vols a 10-0 lead. On the season, Medley is 19-of-25 on field goal attempts.
#11 Joshua Dobbs ran for a one-yard touchdown in the second quarter, giving Tennessee a 16-10 lead prior to an extra-point attempt by Medley.
#25 Aaron Medley made his two PATs against Vanderbilt, improving his season PATs to 35-of-36 on the year.

DEFENSIVELY SPEAKING

Through the first half, LaDarrell McNeil led the Vols with six total tackles, including five solo tackles.
With a sack in the first half, #56 Curt Maggitt's 10 sacks tied him for sixth-most all-time in a single season at Tennessee with Ronnie McCartney in 1975.
#27 Justin Coleman intercepted a pass in the Vanderbilt endzone to begin the second quarter, recording his team-best fourth interception of the year and the fifth of his career.
#9 Derek Barnett now has 19.5 TFLs on the year, tying for fifth-most in a single season at UT with Shaun Ellis (1999) and the most since John Henderson had 20 in 2000.

SPECIAL TEAMS

#43 Matt Darr punted three times for an average of 44.3 yards against Vanderbilt, including a 55-yarder in the second quarter. On the season, Darr now has 28 punts inside the 20-yard line and 18 punts of 50 or more yards.
#20 Cortez McDowell had two tackles in the first half to improve his team lead to 13 special team tackles on the year.

ODDS AND ENDS

On the first play of Tennessee's opening drive in the first quarter, an interception was brought back and given an automatic first down for the Vols, following a personal foul (roughing the passer) on Vanderbilt.

VOLS TRENDING

The Vols were trending nationally on Twitter with the topics: "Cam Sutton", and "Neyland West".

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