The 1985 Sugar Vols
A look back at a memorable team in Tennessee football lore
by Tom Mattingly
The calendar must be telling us a lie. Has it really been 40 years ago this fall that the 1985 Volunteer football squad won the SEC title, finished No. 4 in the country, and demolished Miami in the 1986 Sugar Bowl?
Forty years might seem eons ago in today’s concept of history, but for longtime Vol fans, the 1985 Tennessee football season might as well have happened yesterday. Memories are still fresh, with the team’s accomplishments being remembered fondly.
The evening of Nov. 30, 1985, Vol fans stood much taller and much prouder, savoring Tennessee’s first SEC title since 1969. It had been quite a season for the young men in orange and white.
No. 10 Tennessee closed out one of its most memorable regular seasons with a 30-0 victory over Vanderbilt that really wasn’t that close. On this day, in front of the WTBS cameras, 30-0 was plenty.
The Vols jumped to an early 10-0 lead on a 10-yard scoring toss from Daryl Dickey to Tim McGee and a Carlos Reveiz field goal. Dickey was outstanding that afternoon, completing 22-of-32 passes for 299 yards and three touchdowns.
Given a 10-0 lead, Vol defenders were relentless in their pursuit of the Commodores.
A record crowd of 97,372 packed Neyland Stadium and roared its approval from start to finish. It was the third shutout down the stretch run (the Vols also shut out Rutgers and Kentucky). The Vols dispatched their last five regular season foes by a combined 163-21. They outscored the opposition over 12 games by 325-140. Fans began mentioning the team in the same breath as other great teams in Tennessee history.
Orange-shirted defenders were a major factor in the Vols’ amazing season. Former Vol and native of nearby Corryton, Ken Donahue (1949-50), returned to Knoxville in 1985 as defensive coordinator. His defensive charges improved game-by-game. A 38-20 win over No. 1 Auburn and eventual Heisman Trophy winner Bo Jackson was an unquestioned highlight.
He was awarded a game ball after the Vols’ 16-14 win over Alabama in October. Receiving the pigskin from Dale Jones in the Vol dressing room, Ken said, “This one will go right at the top.”
In the minds of many Tennessee fans, Donahue will be best remembered for his defensive scheme against Miami in the Sugar Bowl. In a 35-7 Vol win, Tennessee defenders came at Hurricane quarterback Vinny Testaverde from nearly every angle and caused 6 turnovers, 7 quarterback sacks, and 5 tackles for lost yardage.
In fact, one media representative voted for Donahue as the game’s Most Valuable Player. The Tennessean’s David Climer wrote that Ken won the game with a clipboard and a pencil.
What Ken Donahue has done with our defense is the most amazing feat I have seen in all my years of football. I’ve been around some good football coaches, but nobody day-in or day-out could outwork Ken. He left his mark on so many people he coached.”Head Coach Johnny Majors
Donahue had returned to Knoxville in 1985 after a heralded career with Bear Bryant at Alabama. His floppy, Sherlock Holmes-style hat was a fixture on the Vols practice field.
The 35-7 win against the heavily favored Hurricanes, seemingly against all odds, is one of the first games mentioned when Vol fans begin choosing their favorite games... and favorite teams. Vol fans ruled the Louisiana Superdome that night, as the magic that envelops Gen. Neyland’s Stadium overtook the “Crescent City.”
Majors saw it all from a front row seat and declared it something special.
“There’s probably no way to explain what it was like,” Majors said. “One of the most moving things of my life was the bus ride from the airport back to Gibbs Hall and seeing people waving their Tennessee banners, stopping their cars, and flashing their lights. I was touched to the point I couldn’t fight back the tears. I doubt I’ve gotten any more pleasure out of a victory, because it meant so much to so many who been have loyal to Tennessee over the years.”
There were other heroes.
There was Nashville’s Jeff Powell, who had risen from obscurity to making a significant contribution as injuries depleted the running back corps. In the third quarter of the Sugar Bowl, when he broke the line for a 60-yard run that made the score 28-7, happiness reigned supreme all across Big Orange Country.
It was a certainty that no one, save Willie Gault, could have caught him. The Superdome exploded in a torrent of noise, as fans in orange couldn’t believe what they were seeing. It was amazing.
“Powell just came roaring down the greensward,” said John Ward on the Vol Network.
Against Alabama on Oct. 19, the Vols had suffered an apparently crushing blow when starting signal-caller Tony Robinson, who appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated after the Vols Auburn, went down with a knee injury. That came as the Vols were driving to what would appear to be the game-clinching score.
Robinson’s injury thrust Daryl Dickey, son of former Vol head coach and first-year AD Doug Dickey, into the spotlight. Vol fans, well aware Daryl had played sparingly to that point in his career, were concerned about the stretch run of the season.
They shouldn’t have been. Daryl, who had an exceptional mind and “feel” for the game, showed uncommon smarts in leading the Vols.
History records that Dickey’s first pass against the Tide was fraught with trouble, almost spoiling the party.
An Alabama linebacker, with nothing but green artificial turf ahead of him, got his hands on the ball, but dropped it. Daryl recovered nicely, with but one interception in 130 attempts the rest of the season, 106 in a row without a pick at one juncture.
Defensive back Chris White of Cleveland, Tenn., also excelled that season, coming off the planks to intercept nine passes for 168 yards and one score, earning him All-American honors, along with McGee.
Against Ole Miss, White had two of his interceptions and blocked a punt.
Dale Jones, who also hailed from Cleveland, was a dominant force up front at defensive end, a player whose motor ran all the time. His name often pops up when the most inspirational players of all time are discussed.
“Chris always seems to be around the ball on virtually every play and comes up with key interceptions,” Majors said. “Of course, Dale Jones is one of the premier defensive ends in the nation.”
Jones made one of the great plays in Tennessee history against Alabama, intercepting a Mike Shula pass at point-blank range to quell a Tide scoring drive.
“Was that intercepted?” Ward said on the broadcast. “What a play by Cleveland, Tennessee’s Dale Jones!"
He was the second Tennessee All-American from Bradley County to wear No. 54, joining Bob Johnson, captain of the 1967 team and a two-time All-SEC and All-American selection. White, Jones, Carlos Reveiz, Bruce Wilkerson, and McGee were also named All-SEC.
“The 1985 Vols will live in memory as the team that restored the Tennessee tradition,” wrote Russ Bebb.
Sometimes teams find the magic and ride it all the way to a more-than-successful season, one that no one could have expected. Once the 1985 Vols found that magic, they created a special place for themselves in the hearts of Vol fans. All the pieces fell together in exactly the right way to create a legendary aggregation.
“It meant so much to the players and coaches and the great Tennessee people who were there physically and on television. I’ve heard people say that, other than the birth of their first child, their marriage, or the first Christmas they remember, it was the most exciting moment of their lives.”Head Coach Johnny Majors
The 1985 Tennessee Volunteers demonstrated the power and triumph of a team, individually and collectively … and the triumph of a legendary coach named Ken Donahue.
No Vol fan will ever forget this bunch. There may have been 77,423 fans in the stands, with most wearing Tennessee orange, but if you took a survey, more that 10 times that many will claim to have been there. This one game had that impact.
