For nearly nine months, the Tennessee football coaching staff has been selling its team to fans, recruits and anyone who will listen.
Not once in the span has the staff experienced a specific aspect of the football program that head coach Butch Jones sees as a defining portion of that product.
The void will be filled a couple hours before UT’s 6 p.m. Saturday kickoff against Austin Peay when – for the first time under Jones – the Vols trot down Peyton Manning Pass en route to Neyland Stadium to the tune of Rocky Top and a sea of cheering fans.
“It is the pride of who we are,” Jones said Monday of UT’s game day traditions. “That is Tennessee – running through the “T” is Tennessee. The Vol Walk is Tennessee.”
Jones said that in total he will spend close to 100 hours this week in preparation for UT’s game with the Ohio Valley Conference opponent from Clarksville, Tenn.His assistant coaches, likewise, expressed respect for the Governors – a team coming off a 2-9 season. But men like offensive line coach Don Mahoney, who spent the last six seasons coaching with Jones at Central Michigan and Cincinnati, is also anticipating the festivities surrounding the game.
“I can’t wait for the entire day with what all it entails,” Mahoney said. “Thinking back on all the greats that have played here and just the overall tradition of this place, I just get chills thinking about it.”
The average attendance at Cincinnati – the previous stop of Jones and five UT assistant coaches – was 29,137 in 2012. Tennessee is expected to triple that on Saturday for the first-ever meeting between the Vols and Governors.Defensive line coach Steve Stripling admitted that he has not yet memorized all the words to Rocky Top – UT’s unofficial fight song – but he’s been taking cues from UT players on what Saturday will hold.
“It’s been real interesting to be around our team,” Stripling said. “They take those traditions very seriously. The Vol Walk – they’re dead serious about that Vol Walk – so it’s been fun to see the kids’ reactions and to actually learn from them.”
Those six coaches experienced Neyland Stadium in 2011, when Cincinnati dropped a 45-23 decision at the hands of former UT coach Derek Dooley. The rest of the staff has coached in at least one game at the stadium in previous jobs.
“I’ve been here, so I know what it’s like,” said Mark Elder, tight ends coach. “I’ve been on the other side. I know that the atmosphere here is second to none, so the only experience you’d have that would be comparable is actually being here.”
The assistants won’t be alone in experiencing things at UT for the first time. According to Jones, the Vols will play 16 or 17 freshmen on Saturday.
“They call it pregame butterflies,” Stripling said. “I’ll definitely have them for a lot of reasons. We’re excited for the opportunity. It’s the first test. It’s going to be great to go out there and get an evaluation.”
A win for UT would be No. 800 for the program. Only seven other schools have reached that plateau.
“A lot of pride and hard work has gone in over the years here,” Mahoney said. “I can’t wait.”
