1976 Tennessee Volunteers football team

The 1976 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee", "UT" or the "Vols") represented the University of Tennessee in the 1976 NCAA Division I football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Bill Battle, in his seventh year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of six wins and five losses (6–5 overall, 2–4 in the SEC). The Volunteers offense scored 237 points while the defense allowed 162 points.

1976 Tennessee Volunteers football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	6–5 (2–4 SEC)
Head coach	Bill Battle (7th season)
Offensive coordinator	Dal Shealy
Defensive coordinator	Larry Jones
Captains	Larry Seivers Andy Spiva
Home stadium	Neyland Stadium
Seasons ← 1975 1977 →

1976 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 10 Georgia $	5	–	1	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
No. 11 Alabama	5	–	2	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
No. 20 Mississippi State	4	–	2	–	0			9	–	2	–	0
Florida	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
No. 18 Kentucky	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
LSU	3	–	3	–	0			6	–	4	–	1
Auburn	3	–	3	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Ole Miss	3	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Tennessee	2	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Vanderbilt	0	–	6	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
$ – Conference champion Mississippi State later forfeited all 1976 wins due to NCAA violations. Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 11	Duke*	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN		L 18–21	82,687	[1]
September 18	TCU*	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN		W 31–0	79,564	[2]
September 25	at Auburn	Legion Field Birmingham, AL	ABC	L 28–38	50,000	[3]
October 2	Clemson*	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN		W 21–19	78,161	[4]
October 9	at Georgia Tech*	Grant Field Atlanta, GA		W 42–7	55,631	[5]
October 16	No. 20 Alabama	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (Third Saturday in October)	ABC	L 13–20	82,417	[6]
October 23	No. 11 Florida	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)		L 18–20	82,596	[7]
November 6	at Memphis State*	Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN		W 21–14	52,311	[8]
November 13	Ole Miss	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)		W 32–6	79,161	[9]
November 20	Kentucky	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)		L 0–7	80,336	[10]
November 27	at Vanderbilt	Dudley Field Nashville, TN		W 13–10	34,694	[11]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

• PK Jimmy Gaylor
• QB Joe Hough
• Roland James (defense)
• RB Stanley Morgan
• QB Randy Wallace

Team players drafted into the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Stanley Morgan	Wide receiver	1	25	New England Patriots
Larry Seivers	Wide receiver	4	111	Seattle Seahawks
Mickey Marvin	Guard	4	112	Oakland Raiders
Andy Spiva	Linebacker	5	135	St. Louis Cardinals

• Reference:^[12]

References

1. "Blue Devils surprise Vols, record crowd". The Charlotte Observer. September 12, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "'Tennessee waltz' too much for TCU as Vols romp 31–0". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. September 19, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Clawed by swooping War Eagles, Vols lose 38–28". Johnson City Press-Chronicle. September 26, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Clemson's ultimate penalty: 21–19 loss". Anderson Independent. October 3, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Volunteers smash Ga. Tech by 42–7". The Anniston Star. October 10, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Bama stops Vols". San Antonio Express-News. October 17, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "UF rally nips Vols by 20–18". Tallahassee Democrat. October 24, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Morgan's running paces Tennessee". The Leaf-Chronicle. November 7, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "10 Reb turnovers help Vols". Alexandria Daily Town Talk. November 14, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Derrick Ramsey stars as 'Cats edge Vols". The Leaf-Chronicle. November 21, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Battle bows out with a win as Vols plan to stalk Majors". The Commercial Appeal. November 28, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "1977 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 12, 2012.