Tennessee 65, Tennessee-Martin 24
(AP Photo/Wade Payne)
By AL LESAR
Associated Press
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Tight end Princeton Fant ran for two touchdowns and threw for another to lead No. 3 Tennessee to a 65-24 victory over UT Martin.
The Volunteers (7-0) used the win over the FCS No. 14 Skyhawks (4-3) to prepare for upcoming Southeastern Conference battles with Kentucky and Georgia.
Besides running for scores of 1 and 11 yards, Fant took a lateral from Joe Milton and hit Jalin Hyatt for a 66-yard TD to give the Vols their 52-7 halftime lead. Fant also dropped a wide-open pass that would have been a touchdown.
Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker, a Heisman Trophy candidate, completed 18 of 24 passes for 276 yards and three touchdowns. Hooker took the rest of the day off late in the first half. Hyatt caught seven passes for 174 yards and two scores.
UT Martin quarterback Dresser Winn threw for 301 yards and two touchdowns.
ODDS & ENDS
Tennessee walk-on CB William Wright got his first career interception in the first quarter. ... Hooker's eight-yard scoring pass to Ramel Keyton gave Hooker a school-record 19 straight games with a TD pass, one better than Heath Shuler (1992-94). ... The 52 first-half points were the most by the Vols in the first half as an SEC member. ... K Chase McGrath, whose 40-yard field goal as time expired beat Alabama last week, misfired from 46 yards. ... After having both goalposts torn down after the Alabama win, Tennessee raised over $150,000 to buy new ones.
SIDELINED VOLS
Seven key Tennessee players were not available for the game. Among them, WR Cedric Tillman missed his fourth game since having surgery for a high ankle sprain. ... S Jaylen McCollough, who was cleared of school sanctions stemming from his aggravated assault arrest two weeks ago, did not participate. ... Both starting CBs Kamal Hadden and Christian Charles were out, along with LT Gerald Mincey and LBs Juwan Mitchell and Kwauze Garland. ... Late in the game, Vols third string QB Tayven Jackson went down with a shoulder injury.
SALUTE TO PAT
The 50-year anniversary of Title IX was celebrated at this game. Tennessee women's basketball coaching icon Pat Summitt was the focus of the salute. Besides coaching the Lady Vols from 1974-2012 (1,098 wins, 8 NCAA championships), she graduated from UT Martin in 1974. Both schools have their arena floors named for her.
THE TAKEAWAY
UT Martin: Ranked No. 14 among FCS teams and 3-0 while trying to defend their Ohio Valley Conference championship, the Skyhawks shouldn't have much negative carryover from the loss. The opportunity to play one of the best teams in the country with more than 100,000 fans in the stands - along with a nice check for playing the game - are just some of the positives that could help in the future.
Tennessee: With Kentucky at home and Georgia on the road awaiting the Vols the next two weeks, they needed a breather after beating Alabama. The game also provided an opportunity to work on specific areas. The secondary needs to improve in order to handle the upcoming challenges.
| Scoring Summary |
| First Quarter |
TN-Mar | Tenn |
| Tenn |
TD |
11:44 |
Jabari Small 1 yard TD run (Chase McGrath Extra Point) |
0 |
7 |
| TN-Mar |
TD |
9:05 |
Zoe Roberts 4 yard TD run (Tyler Larco Extra Point) |
7 |
7 |
| Tenn |
TD |
5:59 |
Princeton Fant 1 yard TD run (Chase McGrath Extra Point) |
7 |
14 |
| Tenn |
TD |
0:00 |
Ramel Keyton 8 yard TD pass from Hendon Hooker (Chase McGrath Extra Point) |
7 |
21 |
| Second Quarter |
TN-Mar | Tenn |
| Tenn |
FG |
10:54 |
Chase McGrath 40 yard field goal |
7 |
24 |
| Tenn |
TD |
10:13 |
Jalin Hyatt 22 yard TD pass from Hendon Hooker (Chase McGrath Extra Point) |
7 |
31 |
| Tenn |
TD |
7:09 |
Ramel Keyton 17 yard TD pass from Hendon Hooker (Chase McGrath Extra Point) |
7 |
38 |
| Tenn |
TD |
4:15 |
Princeton Fant 11 yard TD run (Chase McGrath Extra Point) |
7 |
45 |
| Tenn |
TD |
2:10 |
Jalin Hyatt 66 yard TD pass from Princeton Fant (Chase McGrath Extra Point) |
7 |
52 |
| Third Quarter |
TN-Mar | Tenn |
| Tenn |
TD |
13:01 |
Dylan Sampson 1 yard TD run (Toby Wilson Kick Failed) |
7 |
58 |
| TN-Mar |
TD |
3:05 |
George Qualls Jr. 8 yard TD pass from Dresser Winn (Tyler Larco Extra Point) |
14 |
58 |
| Fourth Quarter |
TN-Mar | Tenn |
| TN-Mar |
TD |
14:41 |
George Qualls Jr. 31 yard TD pass from Dresser Winn (Tyler Larco Extra Point) |
21 |
58 |
| Tenn |
TD |
13:12 |
Squirrel White 64 yard TD pass from Joe Milton III (Toby Wilson Extra Point) |
21 |
65 |
| TN-Mar |
FG |
5:04 |
Tyler Larco 30 yard field goal |
24 |
65 |
| Team Stats |
| |
UT Martin |
Tennessee |
| First downs |
24 |
29 |
| Rushing |
4 |
13 |
| Passing |
15 |
12 |
| Penalty |
5 |
4 |
| 3rd Down Efficiency |
3-13, 23% |
14-19, 74% |
| 4th down efficiency |
0-2, 0% |
1-1, 100% |
| Rushes-Yards |
29-76 |
46-202 |
| Passing Yards |
317 |
494 |
| Return Yards |
19 |
81 |
| Completions-Attempts-Int |
28-48-1 |
26-36-1 |
| Sacks-Yards Lost |
2-12 |
2-10 |
| Punts |
5 |
2 |
| Fumbles Lost |
2-1 |
0-0 |
| Penalties - Yards |
4-39 |
13-109 |
| UT Martin Passing |
| Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
| D. Winn |
26 |
45 |
302 |
2 |
1 |
| C. Brown IV |
2 |
3 |
15 |
0 |
0 |
| Tennessee Passing |
| Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
| H. Hooker |
18 |
23 |
275 |
3 |
0 |
| J. Milton III |
4 |
7 |
135 |
1 |
0 |
| P. Fant |
1 |
1 |
66 |
1 |
0 |
| G. Moore |
2 |
3 |
9 |
0 |
1 |
| T. Jackson |
1 |
2 |
9 |
0 |
0 |
| UT Martin Rushing |
| Player |
Carries |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| Z. Wallace |
10 |
35 |
3.5 |
0 |
| S. Franklin |
8 |
30 |
3.8 |
0 |
| J. Castleberry |
2 |
18 |
9.0 |
0 |
| C. Brown IV |
2 |
6 |
3.0 |
0 |
| Z. Roberts |
2 |
-5 |
-2.5 |
1 |
| D. Winn |
5 |
-8 |
-1.6 |
0 |
| Tennessee Rushing |
| Player |
Carries |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| D. Sampson |
13 |
62 |
4.8 |
1 |
| J. Small |
11 |
34 |
3.1 |
1 |
| H. Hooker |
4 |
28 |
7.0 |
0 |
| J. Milton III |
3 |
23 |
7.7 |
0 |
| J. Wright |
6 |
19 |
3.2 |
0 |
| P. Fant |
2 |
12 |
6.0 |
2 |
| T. Jackson |
2 |
9 |
4.5 |
0 |
| J. Williams-Thomas |
3 |
9 |
3.0 |
0 |
| P. Wilk |
2 |
6 |
3.0 |
0 |
| UT Martin Receiving |
| Player |
Rec |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| C. Dowell |
7 |
112 |
16.0 |
0 |
| E. Smoot |
7 |
89 |
12.7 |
0 |
| G. Qualls Jr. |
5 |
66 |
13.2 |
2 |
| D. Tanksley |
3 |
18 |
6.0 |
0 |
| S. Franklin |
2 |
13 |
6.5 |
0 |
| Z. Roberts |
1 |
8 |
8.0 |
0 |
| D. Nelson |
1 |
8 |
8.0 |
0 |
| R. Fields Jr. |
1 |
3 |
3.0 |
0 |
| Z. Wallace |
1 |
0 |
0.0
|
0 |
| Tennessee Receiving |
| Player |
Rec |
Yds |
Avg |
TDs |
| J. Hyatt |
7 |
174 |
24.9 |
2 |
| S. White |
5 |
122 |
24.4 |
1 |
| R. Keyton |
5 |
76 |
15.2 |
2 |
| W. Merrill |
2 |
41 |
20.5 |
0 |
| J. Holiday |
1 |
38 |
38.0 |
0 |
| H. Salmon |
1 |
17 |
17.0 |
0 |
| J. Small |
1 |
9 |
9.0 |
0 |
| B. McCoy |
2 |
8 |
4.0 |
0 |
| J. Jancek |
1 |
5 |
5.0 |
0 |
| G. Frerking |
1 |
4 |
4.0 |
0 |
| UT Martin Interceptions |
| Player |
Int |
Yards |
| T. Woods |
1 |
19 |
| Tennessee Interceptions |
| Player |
Int |
Yards |
| W. Wright |
1 |
5 |
| UT Martin Punting |
| Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
| T. Larco |
5 |
202 |
40.4 |
| Tennessee Punting |
| Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
| P. Brooks |
2 |
56 |
28.0 |
| UT Martin Punt Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| Tennessee Punt Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| D. Williams |
4 |
49 |
12.3 |
| UT Martin Kick Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| Tennessee Kick Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| J. Holiday |
1 |
11 |
11.0 |
| D. Slaughter |
1 |
16 |
16.0 |
| UT Martin Missed FG |
| Player |
Length |
| T. Larco |
39 |
| Tennessee Missed FG |
| Player |
Length |
| C. McGrath |
46 |
