1977 Tennessee Volunteers football team

1977 Tennessee Volunteers football
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Record4–7 (1–5 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJoe Avezzano (1st season)
Defensive coordinatorBobby Roper (1st season)
Captains
  • Pert Jenkins
  • Greg Jones
  • Brent Watson
Home stadiumNeyland Stadium
Seasons
← 1976
1978 →
1977 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 2 Alabama $ 7 – 0 – 0 11 – 1 – 0
No. 6 Kentucky 6 – 0 – 0 10 – 1 – 0
Auburn 5 – 1 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
LSU 4 – 2 – 0 8 – 4 – 0
Florida 3 – 3 – 0 6 – 4 – 1
Georgia 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Mississippi State 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Ole Miss 3 – 4 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
Tennessee 1 – 5 – 0 4 – 7 – 0
Vanderbilt 0 – 6 – 0 2 – 9 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • Kentucky ineligible for SEC championship due to NCAA probation. Mississippi State later forfeited all 1977 wins due to NCAA violations.
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1977 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee", "UT" or the "Vols") represented the University of Tennessee in the 1977 NCAA Division I football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Johnny Majors, in his first year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of four wins and seven losses (4–7 overall, 1–5 in the SEC).

Schedule

DateOpponentSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 10California*
L 17–2784,421[1]
September 17Boston College*
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
W 24–1883,263[2]
September 24Auburn
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
L 12–1484,084[3]
October 1Oregon State*
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
W 41–1082,865[4]
October 8Georgia Tech*
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN (rivalry)
L 8–2482,631[5]
October 15at No. 4 Alabama
L 10–2471,000[6]
October 22at No. 19 Florida
L 17–2767,711[7]
November 5Memphis State*dagger
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
W 27–1482,573[8]
November 12vs. Ole Miss
L 14–4350,259[9]
November 19at No. 7 Kentucky
L 17–2157,914[10]
November 26Vanderbilt
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN (rivalry)
W 42–783,146[11]
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Personnel

1977 Tennessee Volunteers football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
TE Kyle Aguillard
RB Kelsey Finch
TE Reggie Harper
QB Joe Hough
RB Gary Moore
QB Pat Ryan
QB Jimmy Streater
RB Nate Sumpter
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
DB Thomas Rowsey
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
P Craig Colquitt
K Jim Gaylor
KR Joe Morgan
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Joe Avezzano – Offensive coordinator/offensive line
  • Bill Cox – Quarterbacks
  • Bobby Jackson – Running backs
  • Bob Harrison – Wide receivers
  • Bobby Roper – Defensive coordinator/linebackers
  • Jim Dyar – Defensive line
  • Robbie Franklin – Outside linebacker
  • Joe Madden – Defensive backs/assistant head coach
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Roster

Team players drafted into the NFL

Player Position Round Pick NFL club
Craig Colquitt Punter 3 76 Pittsburgh Steelers
Jesse Turnbow Defensive tackle 8 205 Cleveland Browns
Russ Williams Defensive back 9 250 Dallas Cowboys
Brent Watson Tackle 10 261 Cleveland Browns
Pat Ryan Quarterback 11 281 New York Jets

References

  1. ^ "Cal gives Vols a going over". Oakland Tribune. September 11, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "Boston College bows to Tenn". The Lowell Sun. September 18, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Auburn rallies by Vols, 14–12". The Selma Times-Journal. September 25, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Vols blitz Beavers 41–10 in Knoxville". The Spokesman-Review. October 2, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Georgia Tech uses flood of mistakes to slap Tennessee". The Commercial Appeal. October 9, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Alabama defense sticks Volunteers in 24–10 victory". The Anniston Star. October 16, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Florida's "I" disposes of Tennessee". St. Petersburg Times. October 23, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Streater's 2 touchdowns lead Tennessee past Memphis St". The Courier-Journal. November 6, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Reb blitzkreig humbles Vols". The Montgomery Advertiser. November 13, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "UK nips tough Tennessee, ends 10–1". The Courier-Journal. November 20, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Vols elude SEC cellar, maul Vanderbilt, 42–7". Johnson City Press-Chronicle. November 27, 1977. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "1978 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 7, 2012.
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