1971 Tennessee Volunteers football team

1971 Tennessee Volunteers football
Liberty Bowl champion
Liberty Bowl, W 14–13 vs. Arkansas
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 9
AP	No. 9
Record	10–2 (4–2 SEC)
Head coach	Bill Battle (2nd season)
Captain	Jackie Walker
Home stadium	Neyland Stadium
Seasons ←  1970 1972  →

1971 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 4 Alabama $	7	–	0	–	0			11	–	1	–	0
No. 7 Georgia	5	–	1	–	0			11	–	1	–	0
No. 12 Auburn	5	–	1	–	0			9	–	2	–	0
No. 15 Ole Miss	4	–	2	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
No. 9 Tennessee	4	–	2	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
No. 11 LSU	3	–	2	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
Vanderbilt	1	–	5	–	0			4	–	6	–	1
Florida	1	–	6	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Kentucky	1	–	6	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Mississippi State	1	–	7	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1971 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee", "UT" or the "Vols") represented the University of Tennessee in the 1971 NCAA University Division football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Bill Battle, in his second year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of ten wins and two losses (10–2 overall, 4–2 in the SEC) and a victory over Arkansas in the 1971 Liberty Bowl.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 18	UC Santa Barbara *	No. 8	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN		W 48–6	65,114	[1]
September 25	No. 5 Auburn	No. 9	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)	ABC	L 9–10	62,990	[2]
October 2	at Florida	No. 12	Florida Field Gainesville, FL (rivalry)		W 20–13	61,112	[3]
October 9	Georgia Tech *	No. 13	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)		W 10–6	63,671	[4]
October 16	at No. 4 Alabama	No. 14	Legion Field Birmingham, AL (Third Saturday in October)		L 15–32	73,828	[5]
October 23	vs. Mississippi State	No. 18	Memphis Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN		W 10–7	37,529	[6]
October 30	Tulsa *	No. 16	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN		W 38–3	62,513	[7]
November 6	South Carolina *	No. 11	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)		W 35–6	63,507	[8]
November 20	at Kentucky	No. 11	McLean Stadium Lexington, KY (rivalry)		W 21–7	35,000	[9]
November 27	Vanderbilt	No. 11	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)		W 19–7	56,244	[10]
December 4	No. 5 Penn State *	No. 12	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN	ABC	W 31–11	59,542	[11]
December 20	vs. No. 18 Arkansas *	No. 9	Memphis Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN (Liberty Bowl)	ABC	W 14–13	51,410	[12]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Game summaries

At Florida

See also: 1971 Florida Gators football team and Florida–Tennessee football rivalry

#12 Tennessee Volunteers at Florida Gators

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Tennessee	3	10	7	0	20
Florida	0	13	0	0	13

at Florida Field, Gainesville, Florida

• Date: October 2, 1971
• Game attendance: 61,112
• New York Times, 1971 Oct 03.

Game information

First quarter TENN – George Hunt 33-yard field goal. Tennessee 3–0. Drive: Second quarter TENN – George Hunt 34-yard field goal. Tennessee 6–0. Drive: TENN – Curt Watson 8-yard run (George Hunt kick). Tennessee 13–0. Drive: 74 yards. FLA – Willie Jackson 23-yard pass from John Reaves (kick failed), 2:12. Tennessee 13–6. Drive: FLA – Hank Foldberg 7-yard pass from John Reaves (Richard Franco kick). Tie 13–13. Drive: Third quarter TENN – Stan Trott 20-yard pass from Phil Pierce (George Hunt kick). Tennessee 20–13. Drive: 99 yards. Top passers TENN FLA – John Reaves – 19/40, 213 yards, 2 TD, INT Top rushers TENN FLA – Mike Rich – 9 rushes, 80 yards Top receivers TENN FLA – Willie Jackson – 7 receptions, 93 yards, TD

Third-string quarterback Phil Pierce led Tennessee on a 99-yard drive in the third quarter, capped by a 20-yard touchdown pass to Stan Trott to take the lead for good. The Volunteers lost their first and second-string quarterbacks to knee injuries during the game.

Penn State

See also: 1971 Penn State Nittany Lions football

#5 Penn State Nittany Lions (10–0) at #12 Tennessee Volunteers (8–2)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Penn St	0	3	0	8	11
Tennessee	7	14	0	10	31

at Neyland Stadium, Knoxville, Tennessee

• Date: December 4, 1971
• Game attendance: 54,529
• TV announcers (ABC): Chris Schenkel, Bud Wilkinson
• Ocala Star-Banner, 1971 Dec 05.

Game information

First quarter TENN – Conrad Graham 76-yard fumble return (George Hunt kick). Tennessee 7–0. Second quarter PSU – Alberto Vitello 27-yard field goal. Tennessee 7–3. Drive: TENN – Bill Rudder 1-yard run (George Hunt kick). Tennessee 14–3. Drive: 5 plays, 15 yards. TENN – Bobby Majors 44-yard punt return (George Hunt kick). Tennessee 21–3. Fourth quarter TENN – George Hunt 21-yard field goal. Tennessee 24–3. Drive: TENN – Jackie Walker 43-yard interception return (George Hunt kick). Tennessee 31–3. PSU – Lydell Mitchell 14-yard pass from John Hufnagel (run good). Tennessee 31–11. Drive:

Before the game, Bobby Majors was honored alongside his brothers, Iowa State head coach Johnny and the late Billy, for the family's overall contribution to the school's football program. Majors finished his final home game with 195 return yards on kicks and punts. With the win, the Volunteers accepted a bid to play in the Liberty Bowl against Arkansas. ^[13]

Personnel

1971 Tennessee Volunteers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class OL 76 Joe Balthrop QB 21 Dennis Chadwick RB Steve Chancey OL 64 Bill Emendorfer G 65 Phillip Fulmer Sr OL 73 Gaylon Hill WR Chip Howard OL Tom Johnson TE 84 Sonny Leach WR Emmon Love QB 16 Jim Maxwell QB Phil Pierce FB Bill Rudder RB George Silvey RB Haskel Stanback TE 20 Gary Theiler WR Joe Thompson WR Stan Trott RB Curt Watson TE Jimmy Young	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 13 David Allen Jr DL 86 Tom Bennett Sr DB Eddie Brown CB Conrad Graham DL Frank Howell DL Carl Johnson DE Ken Lambert S 44 Bobby Majors Sr LB 58 Ray Nettles Sr LB Jamie Rotella DE Claude Simonton DB Tim Townes DL John Wagster OLB Jackie Walker  (C) Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 9 George Hunt Sr	Head coach Bill Battle Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Team players drafted into the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Bobby Majors	Defensive back	3	76	Philadelphia Eagles
George Hunt	Kicker	5	122	Cleveland Browns
Jackie Walker	Linebacker	6	148	San Francisco 49ers
Curt Watson	Running back	6	150	New Orleans Saints
Ray Nettles	Linebacker	6	155	Miami Dolphins
Gary Theiler	Tight end	12	308	Baltimore Colts
Joe Balthrop	Guard	16	397	New Orleans Saints

^[14]

References

1. "Tennessee wallops Gauchos". The San Francisco Examiner. Associated Press. September 19, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
2. "Sullivan finally whips Auburn past Vols 10–9". The Selma Times-Journal. September 26, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Tennessee sidesteps Florida's bid for an upset, 20–13". The Palm Beach Post. October 3, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Vols nip 'Jackets". Pensacola News Journal. October 10, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Alabama dashes by Vols". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. October 17, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Vols win 10 to 7". The Tennessean. October 24, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Maxwell rouses Vol offense to 38–3 victory over Tulsa". The Paducah Sun. October 31, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Tennessee bowls over South Carolina, 35–6". The Times and Democrat. November 7, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
9. "Vols edge Kentucky". The Miami Herald. November 21, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
10. "Tennessee erupts for 19 in fourth to end Vanderbilt's upset attempt". The Spokesman-Review. November 28, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Tennessee ends Penn St. streak, 31–11". The Philadelphia Inquirer. December 5, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
12. "Vols take Liberty". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. December 21, 1971. Retrieved May 7, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
13. "Vols Win, 31–11." New York Times. 1971 Dec 05.
14. "1972 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 8, 2012.