1982 Tennessee Volunteers football team

American college football season

1982 Tennessee Volunteers football
Peach Bowl, L 22–28 vs. Iowa
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	6–5–1 (3–2–1 SEC)
Head coach	Johnny Majors (6th season)
Offensive coordinator	Al Saunders (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Bobby Jackson (2nd season)
Captain	Mike Cofer
Home stadium	Neyland Stadium
Seasons ← 1981 1983 →

1982 Southeastern Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 4 Georgia $	6	–	0	–	0	11	–	1	–	0
No. 11 LSU	4	–	1	–	1	8	–	3	–	1
No. 14 Auburn	4	–	2	–	0	9	–	3	–	0
Vanderbilt	4	–	2	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
Tennessee	3	–	2	–	1	6	–	5	–	1
Alabama	3	–	3	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
Florida	3	–	3	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
Mississippi State	2	–	4	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Ole Miss	0	–	6	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Kentucky	0	–	6	–	0	0	–	10	–	1

$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1982 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee", "UT" or the "Vols") represented the University of Tennessee in the 1982 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 sixth year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of six wins, five losses and one tie (6–5–1 overall, 3–2–1 in the SEC) and a loss against Iowa in the Peach Bowl. The Volunteers offense scored 281 points while the defense allowed 239 points.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 4	Duke*	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN		L 24–25	95,223	^[1]
September 11	Iowa State*	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN		W 23–21	90,201	^[2]
September 25	at Auburn	Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, AL		L 14–24	73,600	^[3]
October 2	Washington State*	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN		W 10–3	91,744	^[4]
October 9	at No. 18 LSU	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		T 24–24	77,448	^[5]
October 16	No. 2 Alabama	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (Third Saturday in October)		W 35–28	95,342	^[6]
October 23	at Georgia Tech*	Grant Field Atlanta, GA	ABC	L 21–31	43,182	^[7]
November 6	Memphis State*	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN		W 29–3	94,903	^[8]
November 13	at Ole Miss	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (rivalry)		W 30–17	42,274	^[9]
November 20	Kentucky	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)		W 28–7	93,689	^[10]
November 27	at Vanderbilt	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN		L 21–28	41,683	^[11]
December 31	vs. Iowa*	Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium Atlanta, GA (Peach Bowl)	CBS	L 22–28	50,134	^[12]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1982 Tennessee Volunteers football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`2`	Lenny Taylor	Jr
QB	`6`	Alan Cockrell	So
WR	`24`	Clyde Duncan	Jr
WR	`26`	Willie Gault	Sr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DB	`40`	Bill Bates	Sr
DE	`92`	Reggie White	Jr
DE	`93`	Mike Cofer	Sr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
K	`4`	Fuad Reveiz	So

Head coach

Johnny Majors

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Al Saunders – Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks
Doug Mathews – Running backs
Bob Harrison – Wide receivers
Phillip Fulmer – Offensive line
Bobby Jackson – Defensive coordinator/linebackers
Bill Shaw – Defensive line
Kevin Steele – Defensive ends
Dom Capers – Defensive backs
David Cutcliffe – Assistant

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Game summaries

Peach Bowl

Iowa vs. Tennessee

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Hawkeyes	0	21	7	0	28
Volunteers	7	0	12	3	22

Date: December 31
Location: Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, Atlanta, GA
Game attendance: 50,134
Game weather: 41 °F (5 °C), Cloudy and cool, Wind NW 8 mph (13 km/h)
Referee: James Garvey
TV announcers (CBS): Verne Lundquist and Steve Davis

Scoring summary

1	0:12	TENN	Alan Cockrell 6-yard run (Fuad Reveiz kick)	TENN 7–0

2	12:59	IOWA	Moritz 57-yard pass from Chuck Long (Nichol kick)	Tied 7–7
	6:58	IOWA	Ronnie Harmon 18-yard pass from Long (Nichol kick)	IOWA 14–7
	2:07	IOWA	Harmon 8-yard pass from Long (Nichol kick)	IOWA 21–7

3	11:16	TENN	Coleman 10-yard run (kick failed)	IOWA 21–13
	8:29	IOWA	Phillips 2-yard run (Nichol kick)	IOWA 28–13
	5:34	TENN	Willie Gault 19-yard pass from Cockrell (pass failed)	IOWA 28–19

4	10:05	TENN	Reveiz 27-yard field goal	IOWA 28–22

Team players drafted into the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Willie Gault	Wide receiver	1	18	Chicago Bears
Darryal Wilson	Wide receiver	2	47	New England Patriots
Mike Cofer	Defensive end	3	67	Detroit Lions
Mike Miller	Defensive back	4	104	Green Bay Packers
Lee Jenkins	Defensive back	11	281	New York Giants
Ken Jones	Tackle	12	315	Kansas City Chiefs

References:^[13]

References

^ "Duke surprises Tennessee, 25–24". The News and Observer. September 5, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "52-yard FG defeats ISU". The Waterloo Courier. September 12, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Auburn, wishbone whip Tennessee". The Tennessean. September 26, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Vols' credit pep talk and defense for win". The Commercial Appeal. October 3, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "LSU, Vols fight to 24-all tie". The Daily Advertiser. October 10, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "UT stuns No. 2 'Bama". Kingsport Times-News. October 17, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Jackets sting Tennessee". The Macon Telegraph & News. October 24, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Tigers get boot from UT's Reveiz". The Leaf-Chronicle. November 7, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Vols crush Reb hopes". Hattiesburg American. November 14, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Peach-bound Vols whip UK". Kingsport Times-News. November 21, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Vandy downs UT, 28–21". Johnson City Press-Chronicle. November 28, 1982. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Hawkeyes just Peachy, 28–22!". The Des Moines Register. January 1, 1983. Retrieved August 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "1983 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 12, 2012.

v t e Tennessee Volunteers football
Venues	Baseball Park (1892–1893) Fountain City Park (1894) Baldwin Park (1895–1900, 1902–1905) Chilhowee Park (1901, 1907) Baker-Himel Park (1906) Waite Field (1908–1920) Neyland Stadium (1921–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Alabama: Third Saturday in October Auburn Florida Georgia Georgia Tech Kentucky South Carolina Vanderbilt
Culture & lore	History Smokey "Rocky Top" Pride of the Southland Band Battle at Bristol Porter Cup
People	Head coaches Starting quarterbacks NFL draftees Statistical leaders
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National championship seasons in bold