Author: Will Shelton

basketballs

Another Look at the Ceiling

Four years ago, Tennessee opened SEC play with a 96-50 beatdown of Georgia. Even with a team you already knew was really good by that point, it was an abnormally great performance. It remains the only 40+ point win over an SEC foe since 1979. Those Dawgs were not great: […]

Tennessee 31 Clemson 14: Sunrise

There is, on one hand, a finality to bowl games. The story of your season is now closed, the aftertaste settling in. And even a top-tier bowl’s ability to endure on its own merits will soon pivot hard to the 12-team playoff, where a game like #6 Tennessee vs #7 […]

Orange Bowl Preview: Epilogue/Prologue

It’s still wild to me, and quite a pleasure, to be typing “Orange Bowl Preview” into that box up there. The incredible ride of this football season makes its final approach tomorrow night, already secure in our hearts, ready to bridge the gap into next year. For an encore, the […]

The Bracket From the Start of Conference Play

Tennessee’s 75-70 loss at Arizona capped a terrific day of college basketball, one that will set the landscape as the sport moves to conference play. In the power six conferences, only three teams remain unbeaten: Purdue, UConn, and the surprising year one surge from Chris Jans and Mississippi State. The […]

Make Your Own Fate

When your guys don’t win or make the podium for these national awards despite compelling and obvious arguments, you learn to look elsewhere for validation. And while I can’t promise all of my 25-year-old thoughts on the Heisman Trophy are entirely healthy, I do think it’s the better option overall. […]

First Look: Orange Bowl

The most important work this season is already done: the Vols are back in the championship chase, and would be preparing for round one as we speak in a 12-team playoff, soon to become the clear answer to a season’s success. A job well done earns additional rewards: this team […]