Tag Archives: Grant Williams

Tennessee 83, Mississippi State 76: The Dunk that gave Grant Williams the vapors

Will’s already been all over it this morning, but if anything ever deserved a double take, it’s Admiral Schofield’s dunk last night against Mississippi State in the 2019 SEC Tournament.

I know you’ve already seen it by now, but I also know that both you and I want to see it again, no matter how many times we’ve already watched it. All by its lonesome, it would have been recorded as one of the best moments in Tennessee basketball history:

Will’s already pointed out how perfect everything about that was in the actual moment, but sometimes moments come and then they go, relegated to the archives as they’re pushed aside by the next thing.

But the biggest moments never make it storage. They’re immediately put in a prominent location in the display case. This usually happens due to a flood of ancillary moments that sweep over, through, and around the moment itself. And there were a lot those.

We never saw it coming

One of the most amazing things about the dunk is that it was entirely unexpected right up until the time it happened. When Admiral drove into the lane and jumped off the wrong foot eight feet from the basket, it looked like he was thinking layup and maybe an and-one.

But no. He rose — blasted off, really — and never mind that defender standing there between him and the hoop; he looks like an ant from up here.

It happened so fast and was so unexpected that the bench had no time for a proper One Fly, We All Fly. If you watch it closely, only one guy gets synched up (and I bet research would reveal that he jumps every time somebody’s in the lane anyway). Everybody else acts like their boss just caught them sleeping and poked them with a sharp pencil.

It was equal parts shock and awe, and it was so potent that it gave Grant Williams the vapors. The two-time SEC Player of the Year clutched his heart, pretended to faint, and fell into the arms of a grinning Yves Pons. (Now that I think about it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Pons actually smile before. High standards, that one.)

For Williams, it was apparently a rare and extended case of the archaic condition, too:

“It was a heat of the moment thing,” Williams said. “I actually did faint a little bit. I was shocked. I did not expect that whatsoever. I kept fainting because I kept thinking about it.”

Vol Network color analyst Bert Bertlekamp is not prone to fainting. He is, however, prone to excitement, which is why we love him. Here’s what happens when a guy who lives with his knob turned up to 10 needs to crank it to 15:

https://twitter.com/TreyWallace_/status/1106796854044430337

Yes, that was Hammer Time, Baby, and the Vol Network audio engineer is currently looking for a good deal on a new compressor.

Teammate Kyle Alexander was also in awe:

“Man, oh my gosh,” Alexander said. “I got to see my roommate fly today. That was big time.”

And Schofield, seeing the replay for the first time after the game, concurred:

Listen, we generally eschew hyperbole on this site, but enlarge this picture and then decide for yourself whether we’re making too much of this:

That thing was a triple exclamation point in an evening filled with them. There was a moment earlier in the game when Jordan Bone hit a long three-pointer with the shot clock winding down that caused him to break out into a smile so wide you’d have thought he was just drafted first in the NBA lottery. I can’t even find a picture or GIF of that now; it’s either buried under dunk stuff or simply forgotten.

That Schofield dunk, plus the fact that the team won the game, transported everybody in orange directly to post-game Happy Land:

A shirtless Jordan Bowden even commandeered a post-game interview with Bone just to rib him about missing a free throw:

And Williams, after he recovered his senses, interrupted his interview to goad notorious nice-guy Kyle Alexander:

There are so many things that have made this season so special. It’s not just the winning. It’s not just that this team is full of good guys you don’t have to worry about getting into trouble. It’s not just about One Fly, We All Fly, or the pre-game prayers, or the pre-season baptisms. It’s not just the huge moments like Bowden’s alley-oop dunk earlier in the season or the Admiral Schofield Dunk that Gave Grant Williams the Vapors. It’s all of those things, and I hope there are still more ahead for these guys.

Worth reading 1.24.19: Grant Williams is The Man

If you read only one thing about the Vols today . . .

. . . make it this, from Wes Rucker at 247Sports:

Other Vols stuff worth reading today

  1. Grant Williams Scores 43, Vols Beat Vandy in Overtime, via Gameday on Rocky Top
  2. Vols’ Bone, Bowden produce freelance magic in Vandy win, via 247Sports
  3. Everything Rick Barnes said after surviving at Vanderbilt, via 247Sports
  4. SEC Network on Twitter, via Twitter
  5. NCAA March Madness on Twitter, via Twitter
  6. Williams’ Record Performance Leads #1 Vols to 88-83 Win at Vanderbilt – University of Tennessee Athletics, via UTSports
  7. Williams Named to Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List – University of Tennessee Athletics, via UTSports
https://twitter.com/marchmadness/status/1088267409855840256

Behind the paywalls

Gameday Today: New adventures with old friends, team chemistry, and over-aggressive facial hair

Gameday Today jumps off a cliff with old friends, fans the flames of team chemistry, and marvels at Spencer Hall’s facial hair. This and more in today’s Vols link roundup.

Sports writing meta

I just got back to East Tennessee from five days in San Francisco and the accursed Pacific Time Zone. It was the second time this year I’ve been to the PST, and I’m telling you, there is something quite unnatural about concluding your work day at the same time everyone back home is going to sleep.

Anyway, because I was without my favorite trusty computer and workspace and instead using a laptop and an unreliable personal hotspot, I missed a proper re-introduction of Will Shelton to the new digs a few days ago. So let me say it now — I could not be happier to be writing once again with both Will and Brad, and I am so incredibly grateful for their trust as we once more unto the breach together.

You might call it providential timing, too, as FoxSports just relieved most of its sportswriting staff of their jobs in order to feed a “growing appetite for video.” There’s a lot to digest on the topic of online sports writing, and you should start with Clay Travis’ take, which is dead on and articulates well much of the reason we recently made the jump to Gameday on Rocky Top after over a decade at SB Nation’s Rocky Top Talk. There’s much more to it than economics, though, and having the freedom to choose which appetites to nourish is one of the things that drives us here at GRT. And as I already said, I could not be happier to be working alongside Will and Brad again, pressing toward the same objectives.

Will’s already off to the start you’d expect from Will, using Bane and Batman to conjure new insights about this season and last, as well as hitching his wagon to a FiveThirtyEight scheduling system that uses “power-pairing” to create something that looks to me like a conference playoff. I might like that even better than my own idea of keeping everything the same but using only division results to determine division champions.

Football

  • Two public messages to another old friend, Spencer Hall: (1) YOUR CHEST HAIR IS ATTACKING YOUR FACE, and (2) STOP LAUGHING AT US WITH PAUL FINEBAUM. (Spencer thinks that Tennessee having to play Georgia Tech’s triple option in the first game of the season is hilarious:)

Recruiting

[ess_grid alias=”grt-2017-promo-grid”][/ess_grid]

 

Hoops

Forward Grant Williams will be venturing out onto the perimeter more this season in an attempt to improve his versatility, which will in turn improve the versatility of the team.

VFLs

Reggie Wayne says that Peyton Manning used to change the play at the line of scrimmage “85 to 90 percent of the time.” I looked this up for us non-math majors, and “85 to 90 percent” means “a lot.”

Other Vols news

  • The Lady Vols SEC schedule has been set for the upcoming season. The team will face Vanderbilt, South Carolina, and Texas A&M in home-and-home series this season. The SEC schedule also includes home games against Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Ole Miss, and Mississippi State, and road games at Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, LSU, and Missouri.
  • UTSports.com has a beautiful behind-the-scenes feature with track phenom Christian Coleman.
  • Tennessee is mourning the loss of Dr. Earl C. Hudson, who recently passed away at the age of 91. He and his wife, Martha, have owned and trained UT’s Smokeys since 1994. Condolences to the family.

 

Gameday Today: Is Butch Jones immune to the legion of the miserable?

Butch Jones stiff arms the negative talk and keeps building an awesome class, a bunch of Tennessee baseball players get drafted, and VFLs just keep making us proud, all in today’s Vols link roundup.

Football

This headline from Gridiron Now makes a really interesting point: 

Tennessee recruiting booms despite Butch Jones speculation

You’d think that recruiting would be even more difficult when rumors begin to swirl about your imminent demise, but Jones is instead putting together one of his best classes. Chest bump to Jones for that. Maybe players just understand that relentless optimism better than fans do.

And yet Jones seems to be learning to season that optimism with a pinch of reality when talking to fans through the media. He’s “proud of [his] players, but not yet satisfied.” He says in one breath that Tennessee-Alabama is a “great, great rivalry,” but in the next that “we were very disappointed when we played them last year.” Basically, he’s still being himself but also learning to keep his foot out of his mouth.

There’s little danger in this statement, though, in which Jones says that he is pleased that his veterans are leading and his freshman are following.

Mike Griffith has an excellent feature on incoming running back Ty Chandler that you should go read now. Speaking of Mike, here he is saying interesting things on the SEC Network:

And again, GoVols247 entices you to bear the indignities of a 16-click slideshow by promising Vols football’s best moments against the Georgia Bulldogs. Yes, it’s a pain, but this one’s worth it. (You can also see the whole thing on one page if you are a subscriber.) 

Recruiting

Offensive line coach Walt Wells is up to No. 5 on 247Sports‘ recruiter rankings after landing the commitment of 4-star D’Andre Litaker. He’s third among SEC assistant coaches, and largely responsible for Tennessee’s 2018 class, which is currently ranked in the Top 10 and heading into Orange Carpet Day.

Speaking of which, GoVols247 has a list of five guys to watch this weekend ($$$).

New offers:

Baseball

The Atlanta Braves drafted Tennessee third baseman Jordan Rodgers in the sixth round on Tuesday. Pitchers Kyle Serrano (10th round, by the Houston Astros), Zach Warren (14th round, by the Philadelphia Phillies), and Hunter Martin (20th round, by Houston), and infielder Jeff Moberg (30th round, by the Colorado Rockies) were also drafted. Serrano, however, told Jimmy Hyams that he’s inclined to return to Tennessee rather than heading to the big leagues.

If you’re interested, SEC Sports has a list of all 75 players taken in the 2017 MLB Draft. Actually, they still have it even if you’re not interested, but you know what I mean.

The baseball Vols have also hired Frank Anderson as pitching coach.

Hoops

Five of the first six picks in the Pilot Rocky Top League draft were Vols. Guard Chris Darrington went No. 1 overall. Jordan Bowden went second, and Admiral Schofield went third. Grant Williams and Jordan Bone were fifth and sixth. Play begins Monday night at 6:00 at Knoxville Catholic High School. 

VFLs

Cam Sutton has signed his contract with the Steelers, and according to Spotrac, it’s worth $3,236,714. Love to see these guys so richly rewarded for their hard work.

Peyton Manning offered Lamar Jackson this advice after he won the Heisman Trophy:

“Peyton Manning told me that if you’re not having fun with it, always talk with your guys. Talk to the people around the program who can help you with stuff like that. You’ve got to always have a smile on your face. People are always watching.”

Eric Berry said that he has a very good reason to regularly give hungry people food:

“I don’t do it for the attention,” Berry said. “I don’t do none of this for the attention. I do it to better myself and give back. That’s what you should do it for.”

Other fun stuff

Another sports book has set the over/under for the Vols this fall at 7.5 games. So the money-where-your-mouth-is people are banking on 7-8 wins for Tennessee. 

The USTFCCCA, which wins the award for laziest acronym, named Vols junior Christian Coleman its National Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year. Assistant coach Tim Hall earned National Men’s Assistant Coach of the Year.

Golfer Hunter Wolcott is tied for 13th after the first round of the Southeastern Amateur at the Country Club of Columbus.

Gameday Today: Eric Berry makes everything better

The legend of VFL Eric Berry continues to grow, a prospect turns the table on Tennessee, and we’re beginning to feel better about the secondary, all in today’s Vols link roundup.

Eric Berry just keeps leveling up in Awesome

My favorite NFL team – Eric Berry – is apparently still engaged in the continuous improvement of his Awesome game, getting to-go food at a Knoxville restaurant while he was in town for the purpose of giving it to some homeless people on his way out. He also reportedly stopped and prayed with them. All of this without any cameras or public relations folks following him around. It’s just Eric Berry living his life, and no one but the people involved would have known if it hadn’t been captured by a random Facebooker:

Recruiting

As Brad posted yesterday, the Vols landed a commitment from top-shelf Class of 2020 running back Miles Friday. The 247Sports follow-up article includes a quote from Friday that makes it sound like he was recruiting Tennessee:

“It’s always been a school that I’ve really looked into and could see myself going to at a young age,” said Friday, who’s expected to be one of the top prospects from Georgia in the 2020 class. “It was a few schools I was basically waiting for — them, LSU — but Tennessee was really just the one I really, really wanted. And when I got it, I was ecstatic.

“They looked at me for a while, since my eighth-grade year. But they were like, ‘You’re too young,’ and stuff. And I just kept pushing. I kept going over there, and every time I’d see the coaches, I would just push for them.

“And when they finally did it, I was just like, ‘It’s time.’”

There were more offers yesterday, too:

Football

Brad also weighed in on his projections for the Tennessee secondary yesterday. And we’re adding this bit from 247Sports to our list of reasons to be excited for this season:

The quartet of seniors Todd Kelly Jr. and Evan Berry, junior Micah Abernathy and sophomore Nigel Warrior recorded a combined 25 starts last season alone, and there’s talent to go along with their experience, as all four are former four-star prospects according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.

I’ll keep saying it: Folks are under-appreciating the talent that will take the field for the Vols this fall.

Hey, Tennessee offensive coordinator Larry Scott, how do you keep quarterbacks happy? Teach them about process and patience.

Hey, Lane Kiffin, what do you think about Butch Jones? 

“I think Coach [Butch Jones] has done a great job there,” Kiffin told Saturday Down South. “They really have had some tough breaks down the stretch. They started out really fast with some big wins and it seems like they are right there and need one break to get it done. … Injuries take their toll, especially as the season keeps going on. It’s a tough sport and that’s why it’s one of the hardest sports to maintain winning because of that factor and so many variables.”

Odds and Ends

Grant Williams!

https://twitter.com/Vol_Hoops/status/872904997670973441

UTSports has a roundup of what people who matter are saying about new baseball coach Tony Vitello.

Eight members of the Tennessee women’s golf program will play in 18 different tournaments over the summer.