THE NEYLAND ERA BEGINS
Year One: 1926
General Robert R. Neyland went to work on September 16, 1926. It was Labor Day as 32 Volunteers reported to practice.
Coach Neyland told the young men that practice every day would be organized & at full speed.
The length of each practice would be 2 hours 30 minutes.
Neyland hired William H. Britton & Paul Parker, both his teammates at Army, to be assistant coaches.
John Hoskins, described by Tom Siler as a "handman in overalls," was hired to care for the stadium & Shields Watkins Field. He would remain on the job for 34 years.
Seventeen concrete rows of seats were added to the East Side, boosting stadium capacity to 6,800.
The 1st home game of 1926 & of the Neyland Era was against Carson-Newman on September 25. The 1st TD was scored by the future mayor of Knoxville, Jimmy Elmore. The VOLS defeated C-N 13-0.
Coach Neyland completed his 1st season with an 8-1-0 record. The only loss came...it hurts so much to admit it....to Vanderbilt.*
*Source: TENNESSEE: Football's Greatest Dynasty, by Tom Siler, 1961.
1926 TENNESSEE Schedule & Results
Carson-Newman 13-0
North Carolina 34-0
Louisiana State 14-7
Maryville 6-0
Centre 30-7
Miss A&M 33-0
Sewanne 12-0
Vanderbilt 3-20
Kentucky 6-0
Neyland Stadium
UT vs. Georgia State
View from NE corner
Photo by John White, 2012
Coach Neyland told the young men that practice every day would be organized & at full speed.
The length of each practice would be 2 hours 30 minutes.
Neyland hired William H. Britton & Paul Parker, both his teammates at Army, to be assistant coaches.
John Hoskins, described by Tom Siler as a "handman in overalls," was hired to care for the stadium & Shields Watkins Field. He would remain on the job for 34 years.
Seventeen concrete rows of seats were added to the East Side, boosting stadium capacity to 6,800.
The 1st home game of 1926 & of the Neyland Era was against Carson-Newman on September 25. The 1st TD was scored by the future mayor of Knoxville, Jimmy Elmore. The VOLS defeated C-N 13-0.
Coach Neyland completed his 1st season with an 8-1-0 record. The only loss came...it hurts so much to admit it....to Vanderbilt.*
*Source: TENNESSEE: Football's Greatest Dynasty, by Tom Siler, 1961.
1926 TENNESSEE Schedule & Results
Carson-Newman 13-0
North Carolina 34-0
Louisiana State 14-7
Maryville 6-0
Centre 30-7
Miss A&M 33-0
Sewanne 12-0
Vanderbilt 3-20
Kentucky 6-0
Neyland Stadium
UT vs. Georgia State
View from NE corner
Photo by John White, 2012
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