A HOMECOMING OF OUR OWN

by Gene Middleton

Saturday, October 8^th wasn’t officially Homecoming at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.  But it served that purpose for my marvelous Margaret (’78), your contributing columnist (’77), and our youngest youngun Alex (Berry College ‘12), as we attended our first game at Neyland Stadium in 12 years.

As many of you know, the Vols hosted Southeastern Conference rival Georgia on that beautiful Saturday night to cap a gorgeous October day in Big Orange Country.  More about that ballgame later . . . let’s tell you the good stuff first.

THIS PARA COULD BE CUT IF NEEDED, ANDY & DEB OK EITHER WAY –

We were weekend guests at the home of the magnanimous Middletons of Knoxville, my brother Andy and his darling Debbie.  We got our pregame tailgating done there, powering up with a superb meal of pulled pork BBQ and fine fixins.

To build in plenty of campus time before the 7 PM kickoff, we parked around 3:30 at the Visitors Center on Neyland Drive near Kingston Pike and utilized their shuttle service to and from the stadium.  The $25 park and ride fee made us a wince a bit, but we decided we can swing it every 12 years or so.

The shuttles started shuttlin’ around 4:00 PM and dropped us off at Circle Park, which contains the Communications Building where those rigorous professors made me earn my degree.  And where I larnt how to be such a dang good coe-munikater.

Circle Park is also right by the street where the coaches and players do their pregame Vol Walk, and we got there in time to see it. Decked out in business suits and stylin’ dress casuals, the Volunteers strode down to the stadium between cheering and high-fiving fans lining both sides of the street.  Head Coach Derek Dooley and his kids and coaches were a most impressive-looking group of guys as they went strolling by.

Alex has something like one degree of separation from the rest of the world, so he set off on his own Vol Walk to connect with various friends that go to UT or UGA or wherever . . . he already knows more people than Margaret and me combined. 

Your two alums went on a meandering campus stroll to soak up the sunshine and memories, and we marveled at all the changes since we were in school.  We also enjoyed seeing how some things have not changed at all.  We drifted along in a sea of orange, checking out the variety of vendors and visitors and students and staff.  The whole hoppin’ campus smelled like a great grilled hamburger swirling in the sweet breeze.

We found a spot on the elevated walkway adjacent to the Student Center, upon which thousands of students and staff move daily to and from the historic Hill section of campus.  From that perch, we watched UT’s stellar Pride of the Southland band march down to the stadium on Andy Holt Avenue, propelled by their powerful drum cadence. 

At the base of The Hill, the band stopped, and with instruments raised upward in salute, played their stirring uptempo version of the Tennessee alma mater.  Then they processed into the stadium, playing the ever-familiar “Rocky Top.” During the chorus of the song your distinguished duo did our first first “WOO!” of the day, on a day when we would do quite a few . . . that hillbilly holler is mandatory for all citizens of Vol Nation.

We circled back with Alex at Circle Park around 6:15, then headed into the house that General Neyland built to claim our seats in Section P, 47 rows up at the south end of the stadium on the west side.  Excellent seats, and, same as it ever was, the first look at the field (particularly if it’s been awhile) grabs the eyes and takes the breath.  Neyland Stadium has been enlarged and updated over the years to become a gigantic jewel, especially when it’s all lit up in the evening.

Very touching was a pregame video on the jumbo screen saluting legendary Lady Vols Coach Pat Summit, a loving tribute of support as she prepares to battle her recently-diagnosed case of early-onset Alzheimer’s Disease.  The 102,500 on hand turned loose a long and loud roar when the video ended, and when the cameras captured Pat in her seat at the game, the place went nuts. 

Well, I guess that’s about it … what?  Oh yeah, the game.  Do I really need to get into that?  I mean, everybody knows what happened by now . . . oh, alright.

Dawgs won 20-12.  So, until next time . . . oh, alright.

The highlight of the game for us was a competitive first half that ended in a 6-6 tie, a rock ‘em sock ‘em type of SEC game with the two defenses pretty much holding court.  Halftime hope was high, as UT had seemingly seized momentum with a field goal near the end of the half, and the Vols were set to receive the 2^nd half kickoff. 

But the second half went into fast fizzle mode for Tennessee with that first possession, which was surrendered ineptly when quarterback Tyler Bray recovered a bad shotgun snap from center at the UT 2 yard-line on 3^rd down. 

Then things got REALLY frustrating (did these refs come from a bad rec league game that afternoon?), and bizarre (can’t say I’ve ever seen a 4^th-and-58 before), more bizarre (UT couldn’t take advantage of UGA’s 4^th and 58), then finally slid toward sad -- a tough loss, worsened by Bray’s broken thumb.

THIS PARA COULD BE CUT IF NEEDED –

Bottom line -- Georgia is a more talented, deep, and experienced team than our young and increasingly injury-depleted Vols.  The Dogs made mistakes, too, but over-all played smart, physical, and with poise.  If they win the rest of their conference games, which is do-able, they’ll win the SEC East for the first time in six years.

We feel for Dooley as he soldiers onward and upward in a Rocky Top rebuild that will take awhile.  We’ve been trying to embrace the “it’s gonna take time” mantra, but we were hoping it could somehow be magically bypassed.  But it’s becoming painfully apparent to all Vols that the rebuilding deal is real. 

And the road gets harder in a hurry, with powerhouse LSU and Alabama teams and a strong South Carolina team on deck in consecutive weeks after the Georgia game.  But we will stand by our team, suffer along with them as they descend into the valley, and cheer when happy days are here again.

Even with the loss to Georgia, and finally facing the tough football road ahead, the Middletons thoroughly enjoyed our Rocky Top revisit.  It was a great day at a great place that helped your two alums grow up, and the lessons learned there helped lead us toward a lovely life.  It was good to be home, and in the future we’ll try not to be a stranger.

Gene Middleton is a native of Copperhill and graduated from Copper Basin High School before attending UT-Knoxville.  Margaret Tilley Middleton is a native of Blue Ridge and graduated from West Fannin High School before earning BS and MS degrees in Education at UT-Chattanooga and UT-Knoxville.  The Middletons have two orange-blooded children, Julia and Alex.