University of Tennessee Athletics
Five Things To Know: The Win Over Virginia
September 03, 2023 | Football
No. 12/10 Tennessee kicked off its 127th season against Virginia on Sept. 2nd in a sold-out, rowdy Nissan Stadium that led to a 49-13 victory.
The two programs met for the fifth time on Saturday morning with Tennessee moving its lead in the all-time series to 4-1. It was the first meeting since the 1991 Sugar Bowl that resulted in a gritty Tennessee 23-22 victory.Â
Here are five things to know from Saturday's win:
1. The (Four) the Merrier
Sophomore running back Dylan Sampson kicked off his 2023 campaign on the right foot. Sampson tallied a career-high four touchdowns during the Vols 49-13 victory over the Hoos. He completed his first-ever receiving score while also putting up the Vols first touchdown of 2023. He added three rushing touchdowns in the second, third and fourth quarters to become UT's first player with three rushing TDs in a game since Tiyon Evans at Missouri on Oct. 2, 2021.
Sampson became the first Tennessee running back with four total touchdowns in a game since John Kelly Jr. had four rushing touchdowns against Georgia Tech on Sept. 4, 2017.
2. Lockdown Central
Tennessee's defense put the clamps on Virginia in the opener, allowing just 13 points and 201 yards of total offense. In the last 12 quarters, the Vols have compiled 31 tackles for loss and 11 sacks and have only allowed 27 total points. They have also been stellar on third down, holding opponents to 15-of-54 on third downs over the last three games.
Against Virginia, sophomore defensive end James Pearce Jr. matched his career sack total in the first half with a pair of quarterback drops of seven and six yards. Both plays came on third down and forced UVA to punt. Senior defensive end Tyler Baron led the defensive unit with 2.5 TFLs on the afternoon, which included a pair of sacks in the second half.Â
Redshirt senior defensive back Wesley Walker spoke highly about Pearce's play.
"I am honestly not surprised at all about what (James) did," Walker said postgame. "In the offseason, he made huge jumps both with his character and physically. His body has changed. He's like a manchild out there. He's got so many abilities, so I wasn't surprised at all. I am just going to keep encouraging him to keep going and not be satisfied. Keep going because we got stuff we got to do."Â
3. In The BooksÂ
Vol Nation showed out and set the attendance record for the largest crowd at a sporting event ever held at Nashville's Nissan Stadium. The official attendance was 69,507, beating the Vols previous record of 69,489 at the 2021 Music City Bowl matchup vs. Purdue.Â
"Thanks to Vol Nation for showing up in a big way," Heupel said postgame. "I believe we set another Nissan Stadium record for attendance (sporting event). I think that happened the last time we were here too. Everybody here understands how important the Midstate and this area is. First of all, our fanbase and alumni that are here, but also on the recruiting side of it. Great, unique opportunity to open it up the way we did this season here in Nashville."
4. Vol Debuts
15 Tennessee true or redshirt freshmen made their collegiate debut during Saturday's action.
-
LB Arion Carter
-
TE Ethan Davis
-
DLÂ Caleb Herring
-
DL Daevin Hobbs
-
OL Vysen Lang
-
WR Dayton Sneed
Nine transfers also made their UT debut for the first time in their careers.
-
OL Andrej Karic
-
LB Keenan Pili
5. Milton Magic
Joe Milton III made his 2023 debut on Saturday morning while accounting for four total touchdowns against the Cavaliers. Milton completed 21 of 30 passes for 201 yards with two touchdowns while totaling two scores on the ground. Milton fired 30 attempts without an interception on Saturday, running his active streak to 206Â consecutive passes (32 at Michigan, 174 at Tennessee) without a pick.Â
The streak dates to Nov. 14, 2020 vs. Wisconsin. Milton's 174 attempts without an interception at Tennessee is the second-longest streak in program history behind Hendon Hooker's program record 261 set in 2021-22.Â
Milton posted a pair of one-yard rushing scores in the second and third quarters, tying his career-best output for rushing touchdowns that was set in his Tennessee debut vs. Bowling Green on Sept. 2, 2021.
"We won, so that's all that matters," Milton said. "The only thing that matters now is the next game. Every play you are going to learn from. I feel like my eyes are in the right place. I'm not judging the things that are happening out there, but rather my decision making. I feel like my decision making was great, so I move on from that and learn from that."
Tennessee returns to Knoxville for its home opener in Neyland Stadium next Saturday, Sept. 9 vs. Austin Peay. Kickoff against the Governors is set for 5 p.m. ET on SECN+/ESPN+.
