TENNESSEE FOOTBALL POSTGAME NOTES
Sept. 21 2024 | Norman Okla. | Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium….
Josh Heupel returned to Norman and defeated his alma mater for the first time as a head coach. The 2001 OU graduate led the Sooners to their last national championship in 2000 and finished as the Heisman Trophy runner-up that season. Heupel also spent 11 years as an assistant coach at Oklahoma from 2003-14.
The win marked Heupel’s 10th victory over a ranked opponent as head coach of the Vols and second of the 2024 campaign.
It was Tennessee’s first road win over a top-15 foe in the AP Top 25 since beating No. 10 Georgia in Athens on Oct. 7, 2006.
Note: Tennessee defeated Pitt – who was ranked 17th in the AP poll and 14th in the AFCA coaches poll – on the road in overtime, 34-27, on Sept. 10, 2022.
The win represented Tennessee’s fourth ranked victory on the road under Heupel. Previous road triumphs included wins at No. 18 Kentucky in 2021 and at No. 17 Pittsburgh and No. 25 LSU in 2022.
Saturday’s meeting marked the fifth matchup in the Tennessee-Oklahoma series and first as Southeastern Conference opponents.
The Vols earned their second win all-time over the Sooners and first since a 17-0 victory in the 1939 Orange Bowl which capped Tennessee’s first of six national championship seasons.
Vol Captains/Coin Toss
Tennessee’s team captains for Saturday’s game: OL Cooper Mays, LB Keenan Pili, LS Matthew Salansky, RB Dylan Sampson, DL Omari Thomas
Tennessee won the toss and elected to defer to the second half. Oklahoma received the opening kickoff and Tennessee defended the south end zone.
Team Offensive Notes
The Vols outgained the Sooners 345-222 on Saturday, eclipsing 300 yards of total offense for the 41st time in 43 games of the Josh Heupel era.
Tennessee led Oklahoma 10-3 at the end of the first quarter. The Vols have outscored opponents 78-3 in the opening stanza this season and 519-172 since 2021 under Heupel.
Individual Offensive Notes
Senior WR Dont’e Thornton Jr. capped the first quarter with a 66-yard touchdown reception from QB Nico Iamaleava, equaling the longest catch of his career.
Thornton’s previous 66-yard catch came during his freshman season at Oregon, also for a touchdown against Oklahoma in the 2021 Alamo Bowl.
It was also the longest completion of Iamaleava’s career.
Junior RB Dylan Sampson notched his 10th rushing touchdown with 1:40 left in the first half, plunging in from one yard out to give the Vols a 19-3 edge.
Sampson becomes the third Tennessee running back in the last three seasons to score double-digit rushing TDs in a single campaign – joining Jabari Small and Jaylen Wright who had 13 and 10 in 2022, respectively.
