Vols AD, Chancellor Make Statement on Saturday Night's Chaotic Ending
Tennessee's Week 7 college football matchup saw the Ole Miss Rebels come to town for former Vol head coach Lane Kiffin's return. In addition, Neyland Stadium was sold out and featured checkered stands for the first time since 2017. And then, the Vols-Rebels matchup was one to remember, as Ole Miss bested Tennessee in a 31-26 absolute thriller.
If all of that was not monumental enough already, throw in the fact that enough members of Tennessee's fan base caused an 18-minute delay in the fourth quarter by throwing water bottles, food along with other items at the players on the field. Amidst the chaos at Neyland, quite a few fans were removed from the stadium due to their actions, and there were even warnings from the PA that if the delay continued the Vols would be forced to forfeit with still a minute left in the game.
The cause for anger among the Tennessee fans responsible for the throwing of things onto the field was a spot call from the referees on Tennessee's fourth down attempt from the previous drive, as the refs called Jacob Warren's reception just short of the line to gain, giving the ball back to the Rebels.
Following an eventual settle down from the fans and an evacuation of many fans from the student section of Neyland Stadium, the game proceeded to play out the remaining minute, and the Rebels won 31-26.
Now that all eyes are on Tennessee's actions from Saturday night, two significant University of Tennessee leaders in Chancellor Donde Plowman and Athletic Director Danny White have made comments on the wild finish to the game.
Plowman's official statement via Twitter can be seen below:
First year Tennessee Athletic Director Danny White also released the following statement in regards to the ending:
It remains to be seen if Tennessee will face any consequences or incur any penalties from Saturday night's actions, but SEC commissioner Greg Sankey released the following statement that possibly could mean something is coming for Tennessee:
Josh Heupel's Tennessee Vols will now turn their focus to a Week 8 Alabama matchup on Saturday, October 23 at 7 p.m. ET.
