Postgame Notes: #15/14 Tennessee 42, Kennesaw State 9

TENNESSEE FOOTBALL POSTGAME NOTES
Sept. 19, 2026 | Knoxville, Tenn. | Neyland Stadium
FINAL SCORE: No. 15/14 Tennessee 42, Kennesaw State 9
General Notes

• Saturday’s attendance at Neyland Stadium: 101,915 (sold out)
  • Neyland Stadium was sold out for the 29th consecutive contest, a streak that dates back to Sept. 17, 2022.
• Tennessee’s all-time on-field record improved to 897-422-53 with Saturday’s win (NCAA record: 886-422-53).
• Josh Heupel owns a 24-4 record against non-conference opponents, including a 22-1 mark in the regular season with 21 consecutive regular season non-conference victories. In each of those 23 regular season contests, Heupel’s teams have put up at least 30 points.
  • Heupel’s 21-game non-conference regular season win streak dates back to Sept. 18, 2021, and it is Tennessee’s longest non-conference regular season winning streak since claiming 31 in a row from Oct. 14, 1967 (Georgia Tech) to Oct. 27, 1973 (TCU).
  • The Vols have gone undefeated in their non-conference regular season slate in five consecutive seasons.
• Saturday’s contest was the first meeting between Tennessee and Kennesaw State on the gridiron.
  • KSU head coach Jerry Mack coached running backs for the Vols from 2021-23 and was hired by head coach Josh Heupel.
  • Three other assistants on Mack’s KSU staff coached on Heupel’s staff at Tennessee, including offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Mitch Militello (2021-24), special teams coordinator/tight ends coach Kyle Blocker (2022-23) and running backs coach Aston Walter (2022-24). Miltello, Blocker and Walter all served as analysts with the Vols.
• Tennessee donned its traditional orange jersey tops and white pants for Saturday’s contest. During the Josh Heupel era (since 2021), UT owns a 22-3 record when wearing that uniform combination.

Vol Captains/Coin Toss

• Tennessee’s team captain for Saturday’s game: RB DeSean Bishop, LS Bennett Brady, LB Arion Carter, LB Jeremiah Telander
• Kennesaw State won the toss and elected to defer to the second half. Tennessee received the opening kickoff, and Kennesaw State defended the south end zone.

First-Time Starters 

• The Vols had two first-time starters on Saturday – one on offense and one on defense. WR Radarious Jackson, playing in his 12th career game, made his first career start. DE Carson Gentle got his first career start in his 17th career game.
• Tennessee has now had 13 players who have made their first Vol starts this season – five on offense and eight on defense.

Debuts 

• One Vol, freshman LB Brayden Rouse, saw his first collegiate action Saturday night. 
• A total of 39 different Vols have made their debuts with Tennessee this season, including 21 true freshmen.

Team Offensive Notes

• The Volunteers have scored a touchdown on their opening drive in each game this season, all in fewer than three-and-a-half minutes. The average time of possession on those three game-opening touchdown drives in 2026 is 181.7 seconds (3:02).
• Tennessee converted on a 2-point conversion for the first time since Oct. 15, 2022, against Alabama. Freshman TE Luca Wolf tallied a rushing score with 0:26 left in the first quarter.
  • The last time the Volunteers even attempted a 2-point conversion was on Oct. 18, 2025, at Alabama.
• Tennessee finished Saturday’s game with 268 rushing yards. The Vols have produced 200 rushing yards 38 times under Heupel and own a 36-2 record when doing so, including 30 wins in a row.
• Four different Volunteers rushed for 40-plus yards in the victory, with each adding a rushing touchdown. It marked the seventh time this century at least four Tennessee players had 40-plus yards on the ground in the same contest, as well as the seventh time four Volunteers had a rushing touchdown.
  • It is just the second time this century four different Vols had 40-plus rushing yards and a rushing touchdown, joining a Nov. 12, 2022, game against Missouri when Jaylen Wright (two), Hendon Hooker, Dylan Sampson and Jabari Small achieved the feat.
    • In addition, this was just the 14th time any SEC team has had four players do this in the same game this century, with Auburn (four), Georgia and Kentucky the only others on the list multiple times. The last team to do it was Auburn on Sept. 2, 2023, versus Massachusetts.
  • Six of the seven instances of four Tennessee players notching a rushing touchdown in the same game this century are in the Heupel era, as are three of the seven occasions with four having 40-plus rushing yards.
• Finishing the game with 42 points and 446 yards of total offense, Tennessee logged its 54th game with 40-plus points and 51st game with 400-plus yards of total offense during the Josh Heupel era (since 2021).

Individual Offensive Notes

• Senior RB DeSean Bishop opened the scoring with a three-yard plunge into the end zone with 11:32 remaining in the first quarter. Bishop has scored a rushing touchdown in seven consecutive contests, totaling 11 touchdowns over that stretch.
  • Bishop has now scored at least one touchdown in 12 of his last 13 games.
• Junior WR Braylon Staley hauled in a touchdown reception for the second week in a row with a 13-yard score late in the first quarter.
  • The TD was the eighth of Staley’s career after reeling in six in 2025. As part of Staley’s NIL deal with Moonshine Mountain Cookie Co., Tennessee fans can claim two free cookies at any of Moonshine Mountain’s Knoxville locations on Monday, Sept. 21.
• Sophomore RB Daune Morris carded his first-career game with 100 rushing yards, finishing Saturday’s contest with 14 carries for 116 yards. His 42-yard score was the longest rush of the contest from either team and marked his second-straight week with a 40-plus yard touchdown after notching a 47-yard score at Georgia Tech.
  • The prior 25 100-yard rushing games by a Tennessee player came from either DeSean Bishop, Dylan Sampson or Jaylen Wright. The last Volunteer to do so before that trio was Jabari Small on Oct. 18, 2022, at LSU.
    • Morris is the seventh Vol to rush for 100-plus yards in a game in the Heupel era, including the sixth running back.
  • After notching just one prior reception for four yards in his career, Morris totaled two catches for nine yards against the Owls.
• Fifth-year RB Hunter Barnes scored his first career touchdown with 8:49 remaining in the fourth quarter. His 63 yards on the ground marked a new high of 38 versus Kent State on Sept. 14, 2024

Team Defensive Notes

• Tennessee conceded just three first-half points. It marked the second time in three games the Volunteers did not allow a first-half touchdown, joining the Sept. 5 win over Furman.
  • The last time Tennessee did not allow a first-half touchdown versus an FBS foe was on Nov. 22, 2025, when it shut out Florida before the break in Gainesville, Fla.
• The Volunteers did not allow a touchdown for the eighth time in the Heupel era, including the first since a 56-0 victory over UTEP on Nov. 23, 2024.
  • Tennessee achieved that feat just four times in the 11 seasons (2010-20) prior to Heupel’s arrival.
• Tennessee racked up 10 quarterback hurries in Saturday night’s victory.

Individual Defensive Notes

• Senior DL Tyree Weathersby registered the first fumble recovery of his career with 1:10 left in the second quarter.
• Senior DL Jordan Norman recorded a sack for the second consecutive week and now has 12.0 in his career.
• Senior LB Arion Carter led Tennessee with eight total tackles and two TFLs in the victory, while tying for the team lead with one sack. His efforts will contribute $3,916 in donations to Nashville-area cancer treatments at Sisters Network Nashville.
  • His donation total for the year is now $7,332.

Special Teams Notes

• Entering the night with 13 total yards on three punt returns in his FBS career, senior DB Qua Moss had a 24-yard return—it went to midfield—late in the second quarter.
• After attempting—and making—just one field goal in Tennessee’s first two games, junior PK Cooper Ranvier made two field goals from 40-plus yards in the second quarter alone.
  • Ranvier also made all four of his PAT attempts, improving to 17-of-17 on the season and 57-of-59 in his career.

Career Highs

The following players set or tied career highs in the respective statistical categories listed below:

Offense

• RB Hunter Barnes
  • 63 rushing yards
  • 7 carries (ties career high)
• RB Daune Morris
  • 116 rushing yards
  • 1 rushing touchdown (ties career high)
  • 14 carries (ties career high)
  • 9 receiving yards
  • 2 receptions

Defense/Special Teams

• DB Qua Moss
  • 24-yard long punt return
• DL Tyree Weathersby
  • 1 fumble recovery
• DL Xavier Gilliam
  • 2 QBH
• LB Arion Carter
  • 2.0 tackles for loss (ties career high)