99.1 The Sports Animal is proud to announce the return of Sports Animal SportsFest on Saturday, June 28th, 2025 at Knoxville Expo Center!
Sports Animal SportsFest
Saturday, June 28th, 2025
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Knoxville Expo Center
Tickets are $5.00 at door.
*Free Admission for Children 12 and Under
———————————————————————————————————————————–
———————————————————————————————————————————–
SportsFest 2025 Vendor and Sponsor Interest Form
Fill out this form for more information about becoming a vendor at SportsFest 2025 taking place Saturday, June 28, 2025 at the Knoxville Expo Center. We are searching for sports related items, activities and businesses.
Join us on Saturday, June 28th at the Knoxville Expo Center for Sports Animal SportsFest! This indoor festival celebrates all things sports! There will be multiple sports personalities doing Q&A’s, autograph signings, an awesome buy, sell, trade card show and more. Exhibitors will be on-site offering a fun-filled day for the entire family.
SportsFest has all your bases covered! Learn, play, watch or just get your picture with a VFL or other notable sports figure. From the novice sports fan to the diehards, SportsFest has something for everyone.
———————————————————————————————————————————–
More details coming soon…
Scheduled to appear…
Erik Ainge– VFL QB from 2004-2007 and spent two seasons with the New York Jets for 2008-2010 after being drafted in the sixth round of the NFL Draft in 2008. Sports Animal host of the Erik Ainge Show Weekdays from 9a-12pm on 99.1 FM.
Jayson Swain– VFL WR from 2003-2006 and NFL WR with the Chicago Bears in 2007. He is currently 6th all-time in UT history with 126 receptions. Swain is also 13th in career receiving yards with 1,721. Jayson also hosts the Josh & Swain show on 99.1 The Sports Animal from 12p-3p as well as his podcast The Swain Event.
Tazewell, TN (WOKI) The Claiborne County Sheriff’s Office is asking for help finding a missing 21-year-old woman they say was last seen Tuesday evening.
CCSO says Juliet Rose Morgado, 21 was reported missing from 193 Jennings Lane in Tazewell and that she had moved to Tennessee from Connecticut recently to escape an abusive boyfriend.
Officials add that Morgado was also hospitalized recently due to suicidal ideations.
Those with information on Morgado’s whereabouts are asked to call East Tennessee Valley Crime Stoppers at (865) 215-7165 or online at EastTNValleyCrimeStoppers.org.
Newport, TN (WOKI) The U.S. Forest Service announcing Wednesday that crews would be closing a portion of Rocky Top Road in the Cherokee National Forest for road repairs in June.
According to officials, Rocky Top Road, also known as NFSR 402, was damaged by stormy weather, prompting the need for work from mile 2.22 to 5.72. Crews will be removing damaged culverts, reconditioning the road and adding new surface aggregate.
Officials add that project funding is coming from Emergency Relief for Federally Owned Roads funds, a program created to help federal agencies fix roads affected by natural disasters.
Cherokee National Forest crews to close road for repairs. (Courtesy: WVLT)
Blount County, TN (WOKI) A former Blount County gym teacher is sentenced Wednesday after pleading guilty to touching elementary school students.
Court officials confirming 49-year-old Joseph Dalton will serve six months of supervised probation for the five assault charges levied against him.
Primarily, investigators at the time said Dalton was shown hugging students, touching them in a “tickling” manor and “swaying” with them between his legs. Reports from the Blount County Sheriff’s Office also said that a student told officers Dalton made them uncomfortable because of how close he got to them.
Dalton resigned from his position before being arrested in January of 2024.
Knoxville, Tn (WOKI) An investigation is underway following a fatal pedestrian-involved crash Wednesday morning in Knoxville.
Knoxville Police Department officials say officers responded just after 10:30 a.m. to N. Broadway near Atlantic Avenue to find that a pedestrian had been struck by a vehicle; the victim, a man, was pronounced dead at the scene.
KPD says a preliminary investigation determined that the man attempted to cross N. Broadway outside of a crosswalk when he was struck by a southbound Chevy SUV. No additional injuries were reported, and the involved vehicle remained on scene.
The crash remains under active investigation. KPD says the identity of the deceased is being withheld pending notification of next of kin.
This comes after an 8-year-old boy is ‘fighting for his life’ after being hit by car in this same area on April 12.
Knoxville Police are investigating following a fatal pedestrian-involved crash Wednesday morning in Knoxville. (Courtesy: Knoxville Police Department)
Knox County, TN (WVLT / WOKI) The Knox County Sheriff’s Office arrested three people with ties to the drug trade between the Knoxville and Detroit areas Monday, according to an arrest report.
The office’s report said the three people — Annika Cash, Kevin Foy and Melvin Taylor — were taken into custody after an investigation by the narcotics unit. That investigation was sparked by information that said a white Chrysler Pacifica was being used to sell drugs in the Magnolia area of Knoxville, according to the report.
Detectives then followed the car to several locations, the report said, seeing Cash and Taylor stop to make sales. The detectives eventually stopped the car, the office said, and took Cash and Taylor into custody.
“He stated he came to Knoxville, Tennessee from Detroit, Michigan with drugs and that he sells drugs in the Magnolia area,” the report said about Taylor.
After the stop, the report said, KCSO detectives searched an apartment connected to the suspects. There, detectives said they found more than 18 grams of fentanyl and arrested the third suspect, who arrived in the middle of the search.
The arrest comes as the sheriff’s office, along with several other East Tennessee agencies, continue to work with Detroit law enforcement to crack down on drug trafficking.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – It is Youth Violence Protection Week, and the Knoxville City Council met Tuesday night to discuss a new intervention program.
This comes after the city cut ties with Turn Up Knox in February.
As it was written on the agenda, the resolution was for a total of $519,750.00 to create a community violence intervention program. This caused some local organizations to feel they had been overlooked.
“It’s pretty much a slap in the face to anybody that’s been out here actually doing the work and showing results,” said Rashaad Woods, the director of the ReNOUNce DeNOUNce Gang Intervention Program.
The money set aside in the resolution would go to the National Institute of Criminal Justice Reform, based in California.
“To devise a plan that doesn’t include any grassroots efforts that are already established and effective in the community, it hurts,” Woods said.
Woods said he feels like the city overlooked many local groups doing that kind of work in the community.
“To think that somebody could come from another state or another city and do what a person inside the city does and is already doing better than what they’re doing, it just seems kind of egotistical,” Woods said.
WVLT News reached out to the city with Woods’ concerns and received the following statement:
NICJR is a nationally recognized leader in community-based violence reduction. And NICJR is certainly no stranger to Knoxville. For nearly two years, it has been providing training and coaching to City staff and Knoxville community partners.
If City Council approves the contract extension tonight, NICJR will hire a full-time program manager and local credible messengers. So this will be the best of both worlds – local people continuing to do this important work who are trained and managed by renowned national experts.City of Knoxville
Woods said before Tuesday night’s meeting that he hoped council would consider spreading the money in a different way.
“There’s a lot of programs in the City of Knoxville. There’s a lot of programs that are working in the City of Knoxville. Why not reinvest in some of those programs? It wouldn’t have even taken that much money,” Woods said.
City council spent two hours discussing and hearing feedback on the resolution before postponing it for two weeks.
Amendments discussed included shortening the length of the contract, status reports every 90 days and a workshop.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 5/12 Tennessee opened its two-week homestand with a hard-fought 7-5 win over Northern Kentucky on Tuesday night at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in what was a rematch of last year’s opening game of the NCAA Knoxville Regional.
The Volunteers (36-9) wasted no time jumping out to an early lead, plating a pair of runs in the bottom of the first on a Hunter Ensley two-run double.
The Norse (24-19) responded, however, taking advantage of four walks and a hit batsman to score four of their five runs on the night in the top of the second inning to take a 4-2 lead.
UT went on to score four unanswered runs to regain the lead and entered the seventh with a 6-4 advantage before the two sides traded runs in the inning to account for the final score.
Freshman righty Brayden Krenzel returned to the mound after missing the past two weeks with an illness, striking out two batters in a scoreless first inning for the Vols. Nate Snead slammed the door with a shutout frame in the ninth to pick up his fourth save.
Sharman Shines
Redshirt junior lefthander Michael Sharman stepped up big time when the Vols needed it most by stopping any momentum NKU had built offensively in the early going with 4.1 impressive innings of extended relief.
Sharman gave up just one run on three hits and set a career high with six strikeouts on the night to earn his third win of the year.
Lawless Long Balls, Vols Reach Century Mark
Redshirt freshman catcher Stone Lawless also had a big night at the plate, hitting two solo homers while drawing a walk. The Alabama native’s second long ball of the night in the bottom of the sixth inning proved to be the game-winning hit.
With Lawless’ two dingers, Tennessee hit the 100-homer mark for the fourth straight season. Since the start of the 2021 season, UT’s 664 four baggers lead the nation.
Production Throughout the Lineup
Three other Vols joined Lawless with multiple hits on Tuesday night in Gavin Kilen (2-for-5, 2 doubles, 1 run), Dean Curley (2-for-4, 2 runs, 1 RBI) and Dalton Bargo (2-for-3, 1 run).
Ensley finished with a game-high three RBIs to increase his team-leading total to 53 on the year. Blake Grimmer also had a clutch pinch-hit RBI single in the seventh inning to provide an insurance run for the Big Orange.
Up Next
Tennessee opens an important weekend series against No. 5/10 Auburn on Friday night at 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network+ and the ESPN app.
NOXVILLE, Tenn. – University of Tennessee head men’s basketball coach Rick Barnes announced Tuesday the signing of Amaree Abram.
A guard who earned All-CUSA Honorable Mention status this past season, Abram comes to Rocky Top from Louisiana Tech. He has one season of collegiate eligibility left.
“Our entire coaching staff is excited to welcome Amaree and his family to Rocky Top. We wanted to find a guard with collegiate experience and to get someone who has already performed well in the SEC is a bonus,” Barnes said. “Amaree is a high-level athlete with quality defensive ability who can really shoot the ball from 3-point range. He takes pride in guarding the opponent’s best offensive player, which is a mindset we love here at Tennessee. Amaree is a mature young man with leadership skills who loves basketball and we think he is a strong fit for our program.”
During his junior campaign, Abram averaged 12.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.5 steals in 32.1 minutes per game for the Bulldogs, whom he aided to a 20-12 record. He started all 32 affairs, shooting 42.2 percent from the field, 37.3 percent beyond the arc and 84.8 percent at the line.
Abram scored double-figure points in all but nine of his appearances at Louisiana Tech and had fewer than eight points just four times. He reached 14 points in 12 contests, with 17-plus in six and 20-plus thrice. His season high of 23 came Nov. 9, 2024, at UT Arlington, as he went 8-of-14 overall, including 5-of-8 from deep.
A 6-foot-4, 195-pounder, Abram made multiple 3-pointers 22 times, with at least three in half of those and four-plus in four contests. He also grabbed five-plus rebounds in 12 outings, reaching eight on four occasions.
The Port Arthur, Texas, native spent his sophomore campaign, 2023-24, at Georgia Tech. Battling through injury issues, he appeared in 10 contests and notched four starts, averaging 3.4 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game.
In 2022-23, Abram competed at Ole Miss and was one of the top freshmen in the SEC. He averaged 8.0 points, 2.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 21.0 minutes per game. Abram appeared in all 33 games and made 22 starts on the year.
Abram scored in double figures eight times as a freshman, dropping 17-plus on five occasions and reaching 20 twice, with both on neutral courts against Power Five foes. He poured in a career-best 26 points Nov. 24, 2022, versus Stanford in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., shooting 12-of-18 from the floor and hitting both his 3-point attempts.
Overall, Abram is averaging 9.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.9 steals in 24.4 minutes per game across his three-year college career. He owns a 35.9 percent clip from 3-point range on 4.1 attempts per game.
Abram has scored in double figures 31 times in 75 collegiate appearances, with 14-plus on 18 occasions and 20-plus five times. He has connected on multiple 3-pointers 33 times, with four-plus in six appearances.
A graduate of Southern California Academy in Castaic, Calif., Abram was a consensus four-star, top-100 prep recruit. He finished as high as No. 65 in the 247Sports rankings, including No. 11 in California and No. 11 among point guards. Abram placed No. 76 on the On3 Consensus list, including No. 13 in the Golden State and No. 10 at the point guard position.
As a senior, Abram averaged 16.0 points and 7.0 assists per game, including dropping 38 in a victory over 1-of-1 Academy. The McDonald’s All-American Game nominee led his team to the Saint James Invitational title and claimed All-Tournament distinction.
Tennessee has eight prior letter winners from the state of Texas, including two-time team captain Brandon Crump (2001-05) and two Barnes pupils in Victor Bailey Jr. (2020-22) and Jacob Fleschman (2019-20). The Volunteers also had a pair of Texans on the 2024-25 roster in freshman walk-ons Campbell Duncan and Gavin Paull.
Abram is rated a four-star transfer prospect by both 247Sports and On3, the latter of which slots him No. 18 among combo guards.
To keep up with the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team on social media, follow @Vol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /tennesseebasketball on Facebook.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – For the third consecutive season, Tennessee Athletics has exhausted its football season ticket inventory in Neyland Stadium prior to the summer with all 70,500 purchased.
The approaching 129th campaign of Tennessee football produced a departmental record 97.8 percent season ticket renewal rate. In addition, interest in the Vols continues to skyrocket with a current season ticket interest list of 23,755 as of April 29.
“Vol Nation continues to lead the way as the best fan base in all of sports,” said Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Danny White. “In this era of college athletics, it is almost unheard of to sell out over 70,000 season tickets for three consecutive seasons. The Neyland Effect will be in full force on Rocky Top this fall!”
Rise Glorious, Tennessee Athletics’ comprehensive strategic plan, unveiled ambitious season-ticket benchmarks through the 2026-27 athletic year. The initiative’s initial goal of 70,000 season tickets sold was slated for 2026-27, but Vol Nation has now eclipsed that mark three straight years beginning with the 2023-24 athletic year.
It’s the fourth time in the past 24 seasons that UT has sold out of its football season ticket inventory, last doing so in August 2016 prior to the current streak that began in May 2023. The Vols carry a streak of 20 consecutive home sellouts into the 2025 season.
The 2024 campaign saw Tennessee average a sold-out 101,915 fans and an accumulated attendance of 713,405. Both of those marks ranked sixth nationally. The Vols have drawn an accumulated attendance of 2,821,625 (29 games) since White and Josh Heupel‘s arrival in 2021.
The unwavering support and Neyland Effect has correlated to on-field success. Since the start of the memorable 2022 season, Tennessee owns a 20-1 record in Neyland Stadium with its only loss versus a No. 1 ranked team. The 20 victories during that span rank third in the FBS and tied for first in the SEC.
Neyland Stadium continues to undergo a historic transformation project. An expanded south concourse with enhanced concessions and increased restrooms, along with state-of-the-art Founders Suites are scheduled for completion prior to the start of the season.
Tennessee returns to Neyland Stadium to host ETSU on Sept. 6. The home opener comes after the Vols face Syracuse in the Aflac Kickoff Game on Aug. 30 in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
Tennessee Athletics Rise Glorious Football Season Tickets Sold
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – The ‘Bring the Thunder’ for Childhood Cancer annual baseball tournament is back this weekend on May 3-4 at Bower Field in South Knoxville.
The tournament is put on twice a year to help families with children with cancer.
Every year, two children are picked for the proceeds to go to, this year it is Kayla and Hayden.
Bring the Thunder(Bring the Thunder)
In it’s inaugural tournament, there were 66 teams participating. Since then, the tournament has seen tremendous growth with 124 teams participating and has raised over $331,381 for these families.
It is free for teams to enter the tournament, and all proceeds made at the gate, raffles and donations go straight to the families.
The baseball and softball is not about winning or losing. They are put on to make these young people feel special.
In 2017, Lane wanted to pay it forward after someone lent a hand to his son who had a serious health condition (not cancer).
Lane had learned of a few children play in his son’s league at Bower Field at the time who had cancer and he decided to put on a benefit tournament.
Since then, Lane has been putting on ‘Bring the Thunder’ for Childhood Cancer twice a year to help raise money for families in need.
For more information on the ‘Bring the Thunder’ for Childhood Cancer annual tournament, please go to: https://bringthethunder.org/
