1972 Tennessee Volunteers football team

The 1972 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee", "UT" or the "Vols") represented the University of Tennessee in the 1972 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 third 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 LSU in the 1972 Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl. The Volunteers offense scored 297 points while the defense allowed 100 points.

1972 Tennessee Volunteers football
Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl champion
Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl, W 24–17 vs. LSU
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 11
APNo. 8
Record10–2 (4–2 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJim Wright
CaptainJamie Rotella
Home stadiumNeyland Stadium
Seasons
← 1971
1973 →
1972 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 7 Alabama $ 7 1 0 10 2 0
No. 5 Auburn 6 1 0 10 1 0
No. 11 LSU 4 1 1 9 2 1
No. 8 Tennessee 4 2 0 10 2 0
Georgia 4 3 0 7 4 0
Florida 3 3 1 5 5 1
Ole Miss 2 5 0 5 5 0
Kentucky 2 5 0 3 8 0
Mississippi State 1 6 0 4 7 0
Vanderbilt 0 6 0 3 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

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DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 9at Georgia Tech*No. 15ABCW 34–352,112[1]
September 16No. 6 Penn State*No. 7W 28–2171,647[2]
September 23Wake Forest*No. 5
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
W 45–666,266[3]
September 30at AuburnNo. 4L 6–1069,483[4]
October 7at Memphis State*No. 10W 38–750,201[5]
October 21No. 3 AlabamaNo. 10
L 10–1772,049[6]
October 28Hawaii*No. 14
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
W 34–263,903[7]
November 4at GeorgiaNo. 13W 14–060,086[8]
November 18Ole Miss No. 13
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN (rivalry)
W 17–070,527[9]
November 25KentuckyNo. 12
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN (rivalry)
W 17–764,836[10]
December 2at VanderbiltNo. 12W 30–1034,000[11]
December 30vs. No. 10 LSUNo. 11MizlouW 24–1752,961[12]
  • *Non-conference game
  •  Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Rankings

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Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
т = Tied with team above or below ( ) = First-place votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213Final
AP157 (1)5 (2)4 (1)101110141313131212118
Coaches146441212111616 т1313121111Not released

Team players drafted into the NFL

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Player Position Round Pick NFL club
Jamie Rotella Linebacker 3 62 Baltimore Colts
Conrad Graham Defensive back 8 187 Chicago Bears
Carl Johnson Back 10 254 Dallas Cowboys
Richard Earl Tackle 11 265 Buffalo Bills

[13]

References

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  1. ^ "Vols wreck Tech, 34–3". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Associated Press. September 10, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "Undefeated season ends early for State". The Philadelphia Inquirer. September 17, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Vol aerial attack blitzes WF by 45–6". The Gastonia Gazette. September 24, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Auburn does it to Tennessee again, but this time it's an upset". The Courier-Journal. October 1, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Interception Vols key". The Leaf-Chronicle. October 8, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Alabama drops Vols 17–10 in defensive classic". The Jackson Sun. October 22, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Tennessee gridders drub Hawaii, 34–2". The Daily Advertiser. October 29, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Vols grab win over Georgia". Sunday Gazette-Mail. November 5, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Vols vault into Bluebonnet". The Tennessean. November 19, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "A gritty effort by Kentucky, but Tennessee triumphs 17–7". Lexington Herald-Leader. November 26, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Stanback paces Tennessee to 30–10 win over Vandy". The Paducah Sun. December 3, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Quick-striking Vols muzzle Bengals' late charge". The Commercial Appeal. December 31, 1972. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "1973 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 8, 2012.