1973 Tennessee Volunteers football
Gator Bowl, L 19–28 vs. Texas Tech
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Ranking
APNo. 19
Record8–4 (3–3 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJim Wright
CaptainEddie Brown
Home stadiumNeyland Stadium
Seasons
← 1972
1974 →
1973 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 4 Alabama $ 8 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0
No. 13 LSU 5 – 1 – 0 9 – 3 – 0
Ole Miss 4 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
No. 19 Tennessee 3 – 3 – 0 8 – 4 – 0
Georgia 3 – 4 – 0 7 – 4 – 1
Florida 3 – 4 – 0 7 – 5 – 0
Kentucky 3 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Auburn 2 – 5 – 0 6 – 6 – 0
Mississippi State 2 – 5 – 0 4 – 5 – 2
Vanderbilt 1 – 5 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1973 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee", "UT" or the "Vols") represented the University of Tennessee in the 1973 NCAA Division I football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Bill Battle, in his fourth year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of eight wins and four losses (8–4 overall, 3–3 in the SEC) and a loss to Texas Tech in the 1973 Gator Bowl.

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 15Duke*No. 9
W 21–1770,787[1]
September 22at Army*No. 10
W 37–1839,942[2]
September 29No. 11 AuburnNo. 9
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN (rivalry)
W 21–071,656[3]
October 6Kansas*No. 9
W 28–2742,842–43,716[4]
October 13Georgia Tech*No. 8
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN (rivalry)
W 20–1470,616[5]
October 20at No. 2 AlabamaNo. 10
ABCL 21–4272,226[6]
October 27TCU*No. 14
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
W 39–766,356[7]
November 3GeorgiadaggerNo. 11
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
L 31–3570,812[8]
November 17at Ole MissNo. 16
ABCL 18–2839,500[9]
November 24at Kentucky
W 16–1454,000[10]
December 1VanderbiltNo. 19
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN (rivalry)
W 20–1766,702[11]
December 29vs. No. 11 Texas Tech*No. 20
ABCL 19–2862,109[12]
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1973 Tennessee Volunteers football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
QB Condredge Holloway
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Game summaries

Army

Period 1 2 34Total
#10 Tennessee 6 7 71737
Army 3 0 31218

at Michie Stadium, West Point, New York

  • Date: September 22
  • Game attendance: 39,942
  • Recap
Game information
First Quarter
  • ARMY - Barclay 25-yard field goal
  • TEN - Townsend 37-yard field goal
  • TEN - Townsend 26-yard field goal
Second Quarter
  • TEN - Stanback 1-yard run (Townsend kick)
Third Quarter
  • ARMY - Barclay 38-yard field goal
  • TEN - Chancey 10-yard run (Townsend kick)
Fourth Quarter
  • TEN - Townsend 26-yard field goal
  • ARMY - Simons 1-yard run (pass failed)
  • TEN - Morgan 28-yard pass from Holloway (Townsend kick)
  • ARMY - Armstrong 25-yard pass from Fink (pass failed)
  • TEN - Yarborough 42-yard pass from Valbuena (Townsend kick)

Condredge Holloway set up Tennessee touchdowns with a 52-yard pass and a 48-yard run as Tennessee won its second straight while Army dropped its third consecutive season opener. Holloway fumbled at his own 12 on the second play of the game, which set up an Army field goal. The slippery QB came back to engineer two first-quarter field goals by Ricky Townsend. Midway through the second period, Holloway evaded the rush and found Emmon Love for a nine-yard gain to the 33. On the next play, he found Stanley Morgan deep down the left sideline for a long bomb to the Army 15.[13]

Draft picks

Player Position Round Pick NFL club
Bill Rudder Running Back 3 59 San Diego Chargers
Haskel Stanback Running Back 5 114 Cincinnati Bengals
Defensive Back 8 ]
Gary Valbuena Quarterback 10 260 Miami Dolphins
Gene Killian Guard 16 413 Dallas Cowboys

[14]

References

  1. ^ "Vols finally slip past tenacious Blue Devils". The News and Observer. September 16, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "Vols march to 37–18 triumph over Cadets". The Atlanta Constitution. September 23, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Tennessee stifles Auburn offense for 21–0 win". The Selma Times-Journal. September 30, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Jayhawks gamble and lose". The Kansas City Star. October 7, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Holloway directs Tennessee victory over Georgia Tech". The Paducah Sun. October 14, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Alabama halts Tennessee win streak, 42–21". Johnson City Press-Chronicle. October 21, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "14th-ranked Vols blast TCU, 39–7". Victoria Advocate. October 28, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Georgia's late touchdown finishes Tennessee upset". The Spokesman-Review. November 4, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Vols upset, Ole Miss grinds out 28–18 win, but Orange is still bowl-bound". Kingsport Times-News. November 18, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ Rick Bailey (November 25, 1973). "Steele's Kick Falls Short And Kentucky's Hopes End As Vols Hang On 16-14". Lexington Herald-Leader – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "It's Holloway to rescue in 20–17 Vol win". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. December 2, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Barnes' passes cut down Vols for Texas Tech". The Miami Herald. December 30, 1973. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Holloway Leads Tennessee." Palm Beach Post. p. 84. 1973 Sep 23.
  14. ^ "1974 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 8, 2012.
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