1986 Tennessee Volunteers football team

The 1986 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee" or the "Vols") represented the University of Tennessee in the 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Johnny Majors, in his tenth year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of seven wins and five losses (7–5 overall, 3–3 in the SEC) and with a victory over Minnesota in the Liberty Bowl. The Volunteers offense scored 293 points while the defense allowed 249 points.

1986 Tennessee Volunteers football
Liberty Bowl champion
Liberty Bowl, W 21–14 vs. Minnesota
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Record7–5 (3–3 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorWalt Harris (4th season)
Defensive coordinatorKen Donahue (2nd season)
Captains
Home stadiumNeyland Stadium
Seasons
← 1985
1987 →
1986 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 10 LSU $ 5 1 0 9 3 0
No. 6 Auburn 4 2 0 10 2 0
No. 9 Alabama 4 2 0 10 3 0
Georgia 4 2 0 8 4 0
Ole Miss 4 2 0 8 3 1
Tennessee 3 3 0 7 5 0
Mississippi State 2 4 0 6 5 0
Kentucky 2 4 0 5 5 1
Florida 2 4 0 6 5 0
Vanderbilt 0 6 0 1 10 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

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DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 6New Mexico*No. 10W 35–2193,875[1]
September 13Mississippi StateNo. 8
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
TBSL 27–2389,897[2]
September 27at No. 8 AuburnABCL 8–3472,500[3]
October 4UTEP*
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
W 26–1692,824[4]
October 11Army*
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
L 21–2591,343[5]
October 18No. 2 Alabama
ABCL 28–5695,115[6]
October 25at Georgia Tech*TBSL 13–1428,432[7]
November 8Memphis State* 
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN
W 33–389,815[8]
November 15at No. 20 Ole MissTBSW 22–1035,000[9]
November 22Kentucky
  • Neyland Stadium
  • Knoxville, TN (rivalry)
W 28–990,747[10]
November 29at VanderbiltW 35–2041,572[11]
December 29vs. Minnesota*RaycomW 21–1451,357[12]
  • *Non-conference game
  •  Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Game summaries

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Vs. Minnesota (Liberty Bowl)

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Minnesota vs. Tennessee
1 234Total
Golden Gophers 0 383 14
Volunteers 7 707 21

Team players drafted into the NFL

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Player Position Round Pick NFL club
Bruce Wilkerson Tackle 2 52 Los Angeles Raiders
Joey Clinkscales Wide receiver 9 233 Pittsburgh Steelers
Dale Jones Linebacker 10 262 Dallas Cowboys
Carlos Reveiz Kicker 11 302 New England Patriots

References

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  1. ^ "Lobos lose to Vols". The Santa Fe New Mexican. September 7, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "Felker making many believers". Hattiesburg American. September 14, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Tigers put the squeeze on". The Anniston Star. September 28, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "UT win over Miners is no gem". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. October 5, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Vols fall in battle to Army". The Commercial Appeal. October 12, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "'Bama offense destroys Vols". Johnson City Press. October 19, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Slip of toe lets Tech win 14–13". The Atlanta Constitution. October 26, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Vols pocket 33–3 win". The Herald. November 9, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Tennessee knocks out the Rebels". The Commercial Appeal. November 16, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Vols earn Liberty bid, 28–9". Kingsport Times-News. November 23, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Tennessee bowls over Vanderbilt". The Jackson Sun. November 30, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Tennessee air raid sinks Gophers' rally". Chicago Tribune. December 30, 1986. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "1987 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 12, 2012.