This may be too much for one Saturday.
The Vols are going to do a Neyland Stadium dress parade in their black uniforms, take on South Carolina starting at noon and honor Hall of Fame linebacker Al Wilson at halftime.
The game could be a bit too interesting. No way will they score 62, rack up 35 first downs, gain 683 yards and not punt. That won’t happen again anytime soon – well, not before Vanderbilt.
There is no danger that Wilson will receive more applause than he deserves. He was the heart and soul of the national championship season.
You can have the black uniforms.
The Vols really, really need another victory. They hope to validate their improvement and remain the talk of the town. Seriously, basketball practice is underway.
South Carolina, like Tennessee, is undergoing reconstruction. New coach Shane Beamer hopes to do for the Gamecocks what his famous father did for Virginia Tech.
“Beamer Ball” is said to be the ability to score on offense, defense or special teams no matter who is on the field.
“We want to have that mentality,” said Shane.
Results may come later. The Gamecocks are fighters on defense. Offensive consternation hasn’t been cured. They haven’t played Missouri.
South Carolina is 3-2. It walloped Eastern Illinois, edged East Carolina, lost at Georgia, 40-13, lost at home to Kentucky, 16-10, and pulled out an unimpressive triumph over Troy.
That game included a prospective play of the year. Troy’s quarterback fumbled. A Carolina lineman picked up the ball and fumbled. Defensive back Jahmar Brown seized possession and was on his way to an easy touchdown. He closed with a showtime toss of the ball, guaranteed to get ESPN highlight time.
Alas, video review showed Jahmar threw away the ball before he crossed the goal. He did get his eight seconds of TV fame.
South Carolina has something else Tennessee does not have – a graduate assistant coach reactivated to play quarterback when the planned starter suffered a sprained foot in an August scrimmage.
Zeb Noland gave new meaning to the old “coach on the field” cliché.
Noland played for his father at Oconee County, Ga., High School. He was with Iowa State for three seasons. He transferred to North Dakota State and put up some numbers but decided to begin his coaching career with the Gamecocks.
When Coach Beamer asked about filling the void on the field, Zeb thought he was joking.
In fact, Noland started the opener and responded with a methodical four-touchdown first half. He was not offended that fans had never heard of him. His two-game production was 332 yards and five touchdowns. After that, Luke Doty got well.
Noland remains on the roster, listed as the reserve quarterback for Saturday.
Nothing like that ever happened to Al Wilson. He came out of Jackson as a prep all-American, linebacker and running back. He started three seasons at Tennessee and was again an all-American. It’s no coincidence that the Vols were 34-4 during his time.
Some still claim he almost single-handedly willed the Vols to their dramatic 20-17 win over Florida in 1998 – 12 tackles and a school-record three forced fumbles.
Al Wilson was a “storm the hill and plant the flag” kind of Volunteer. He was a natural leader, a dressing room preacher. He certainly talked the talk but also walked the walk.
Aldra Kauwa Wilson made his most famous speech in Atlanta, halftime of the 1997 SEC championship game. His high-pitched voice vibrated in Volunteer ears.
Auburn’s War damn Eagles were leading 20-10. Wilson, fierce hitter with an overflow of intensity, thought the game looked worse than the score. He did not approve. Rumor has it some of his words peeled paint off the walls. They were not Sunday school words.
He may or may not have thrown two chairs.
Al went around the room, calling out teammates by name, challenging everybody’s manhood and their desire to win. Peyton Manning and Leonard Little admitted to medium cases of shock.
Wilson wept. He said he would do anything to win that game. He said the Vols had to dig down deep, because nobody believed they could come from behind.
Tennessee came from behind. Tennessee won, 30-29.
Wilson was a key Vol in the national championship season. He remains one of the most revered players in school history. He was a first-round pick of the Denver Broncos. He lasted eight seasons. He was captain the last five.
Wilson is a new electee to the college football hall of fame. He will be officially inducted in December. UT and The National Football Foundation will jointly honor him at intermission. Wilson will accept a duplicate plaque for the Volunteers to hang on a wall.
Wilson is 24th among Tennessee players and coaches to be so honored. The others, in chronological order, are Gene McEver, Beattie Feathers, Robert R. Neyland, Herman Hickman, Bobby Dodd, Bob Suffridge, Nathan W. Dougherty, George Cafego, Bowden Wyatt.
Hank Lauricella, Doug Atkins, John Majors, Bob Johnson, Ed Molinski, Steve DeLong, John Michels, Steve Kiner, Reggie White, Doug Dickey, Frank Emanuel, Chip Kell, Phillip Fulmer and Peyton Manning.
Dodd and Wyatt were elected as both players and coaches.
Marvin West welcomes reader comments or questions. His address is marvinwest75@gmail.com.