University of Tennessee Athletics
Photo by: Andrew Ferguson/Tennessee Athletics
Five Things To Know: The Win Over Pitt
September 12, 2022 | Football
Tennessee football picked up its first road win of the 2022 campaign with a hard-fought, 34-27 overtime triumph at No. 17 Pittsburgh on Saturday. Here are five things to know from the victory:
Tillman finished the day with 162 receiving yards, marking his sixth-career game with over 100 yards receiving and his fifth in the last six games dating back to last season. Against six AP Top 25 ranked opponents the last two seasons, he has 39 catches for 677 yards (112.8 yards/game) and six touchdowns.
Hooker notched his fourth-career 300-yard passing game and third at Tennessee, completing 27-of-42 passes for 325 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. In the process, he broke the school record for consecutive attempts without a pick with 167, passing Jarrett Guarantano who had 166 in 2018.
With 59,785 on hand for Tennessee's thrilling victory, a crowd of Big Orange fueled the Vols bench throughout the contest. The Tennessee faithful traveled early and in numbers, announcing their attendance early as chants of "It's great, to be, a Tennessee Vol" and V-O-L-S spell-outs rang throughout PNC Park Friday night when Vol Nation took over the Pittsburgh Pirates game against the St. Louis Cardinals. It continued through the weekend as boats packed with orange-clad supporters cruised the waters of the Ohio River and culminated as the Pride of the Southland Band belted out Rocky Top from Section 101.
Tennessee returns home this week for a third consecutive non-conference matchup, playing host to the Akron Zips on Saturday, Sept. 17. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET from Neyland Stadium, and the game will be streamed exclusively online via SEC Network+/ESPN+.
1. Four, Five, SIX!
Quarterback Hendon Hooker delivered the game-clinching touchdown in overtime with a 28-yard pass to his top target, fifth-year wideout Cedric Tillman. The two have connected for a touchdown 11 times in the last two seasons.Tillman finished the day with 162 receiving yards, marking his sixth-career game with over 100 yards receiving and his fifth in the last six games dating back to last season. Against six AP Top 25 ranked opponents the last two seasons, he has 39 catches for 677 yards (112.8 yards/game) and six touchdowns.
Hooker notched his fourth-career 300-yard passing game and third at Tennessee, completing 27-of-42 passes for 325 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. In the process, he broke the school record for consecutive attempts without a pick with 167, passing Jarrett Guarantano who had 166 in 2018.
2. Vol Nation Traveled in Droves
"For our fans that traveled here, the amount of Orange that was inside of that stadium in a game that is honoring Coach Majors, that was awesome to see," head coach Josh Heupel said in his postgame remarks. "Players, the staff and myself appreciate the efforts that our fanbase makes."With 59,785 on hand for Tennessee's thrilling victory, a crowd of Big Orange fueled the Vols bench throughout the contest. The Tennessee faithful traveled early and in numbers, announcing their attendance early as chants of "It's great, to be, a Tennessee Vol" and V-O-L-S spell-outs rang throughout PNC Park Friday night when Vol Nation took over the Pittsburgh Pirates game against the St. Louis Cardinals. It continued through the weekend as boats packed with orange-clad supporters cruised the waters of the Ohio River and culminated as the Pride of the Southland Band belted out Rocky Top from Section 101.
by the sound of it, #VolNation has arrived in Pittsburgh pic.twitter.com/4wqKdMQVoe
— Tennessee Athletics (@Vol_Sports) September 10, 2022
3. Rockin' on the Road
For the second consecutive true road game, Tennessee bested a top 20 opponent, with the last time being a 45-42 victory at No. 17 Kentucky. Heupel now becomes the first UT coach in the AP Poll era, which began in 1936, to record a true road victory over top-20 teams in his first two seasons. He is also the first Tennessee coach since Phillip Fulmer to collect two road wins against opponents ranked 20th or better.With the win over No. 17 Pitt, @coachjoshheupel becomes the first @Vol_Football coach in the AP Poll era (since 1936) to record at least 1 ROAD win (non neutral) over a top 20 team in each of his first two seasons with the program. #GBO🍊 pic.twitter.com/SfN7NPHdi7
— Bill Martin (@Bill_Martin) September 11, 2022
4. Overtime Royalty
Tennessee football faithful have become accustomed to witnessing memorable, exhilarating battles from the Vols each season. Saturday's contest was no different as UT earned its 14th overtime victory all-time, breaking a tie with Arkansas for the most OT wins in NCAA history. Tennessee also leads the nation with 23 total overtime games and has seen at least one game go to extra periods in 14 of the past 16 seasons.5. Win At Pitt Marks Several Milestones
In their first trip ever to Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania, the Volunteers topped the Panthers at Acrisure Stadium, marking Tennessee's first victory in the Keystone State. UT was the first SEC team to compete at the stadium, which was formerly known as Heinz Field. With the win, the Vols have now defeated every team in the ACC, owning a 107-62-7 (.641) record and totaling 34 road wins against current members of the conference. Tennessee has now won four of its last five meetings against ACC members.Tennessee returns home this week for a third consecutive non-conference matchup, playing host to the Akron Zips on Saturday, Sept. 17. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET from Neyland Stadium, and the game will be streamed exclusively online via SEC Network+/ESPN+.
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