The 1969 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee", "UT" or the "Vols") represented the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state ...

in the

1969 NCAA University Division football season The 1969 NCAA University Division football season was celebrated as the centennial of college football (the first season being the one in 1869). During the 20th century, the NCAA had no playoff for the major college football teams, later known a ...

. Playing as a member of the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...

(SEC), the team was led by head coach

Doug Dickey Douglas Adair Dickey (born June 24, 1932) is an American former college football player and coach and college athletics administrator. Dickey is a South Dakota native who was raised in Florida and graduated from the University of Florida, wher ...

, in his sixth year, and played their home games at

Neyland Stadium Neyland Stadium ( ), is a sports stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. It serves primarily as the home of the Tennessee Volunteers football team, but is also used to host large conventions and has been a site for several National Foot ...

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state' ...

. They finished the season with a record of nine wins and two losses (9–2 overall, 5–1 in the SEC) and a loss against

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

in the Gator Bowl. Tennessee's defense featured Jack Reynolds and All-American

Steve Kiner Steven Albert Kiner (born June 12, 1947) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots, and Houston Oilers. He played college football for th ...

while the offense featured

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

Bobby Scott throwing to

end End, END, Ending, or variation, may refer to: End *In mathematics: ** End (category theory) ** End (topology) **End (graph theory) ** End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) **End (endomorphism) *In sports and games **End (gridiron footbal ...

Ken DeLong. Chip Kell was an All-American

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

on the offensive line. Florida Gators coach

Ray Graves Samuel Ray Graves (December 31, 1918 – April 10, 2015) was an American college and professional football player and college football coach. He was a native of Tennessee and a graduate of the University of Tennessee, where he was the starting ...

' final game saw his club beat the SEC champion Volunteers, 14–13, in the Gator Bowl. The game, which marked the Gator Bowl's silver anniversary had added drama because two days before kickoff word leaked out that Volunteers head coach Doug Dickey, the SEC Coach of the Year, would return to Florida, his alma mater, after the game.

Schedule

Roster

*OG #65 Phillip Fulmer, So. *LB #57 Steve Kiner, Sr. *DB Bobby Majors, So. *LB Jack Reynolds, Sr.

Team players drafted into the NFL

References

{{Southeastern Conference football champions

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

Tennessee Volunteers football seasons Southeastern Conference football champion seasons

Tennessee Volunteers football The Tennessee Volunteers football program (variously called "Tennessee", "Vols", "UT", or "Big Orange") represents the University of Tennessee (UT). The Vols have played football for 130 seasons, starting in 1891; their combined record of 862� ...