Virginia vs. Tennessee by the numbers
Virginia vs. No. 12 Tennessee
11 a.m. CDT Saturday (ABC)
Nissan Stadium, Nashville, Tennessee
1 NCAA FBS player had at least 10 TD passes and no interceptions in the 2022 season – Tennessee QB Joe Milton III. Milton stepped in when Hendon Hooker got hurt on Nov. 19 against South Carolina and completed 34-of-57 passes for 506 yards with five TDs and no interceptions in the remainder of the season. Milton has thrown 144 passes in his time at Tennessee without an interception.
2 Previous seasons have opened for Tennessee at Nissan Stadium. The Volunteers defeated Wyoming 47-7 in 2002 and Bowling Green 59-30 in 2015 in Nashville games. Tennessee is 3-2 in the stadium after losing to Purdue 48-45 in the Music City Bowl on Dec. 30, 2021, in the Vols’ most recent game there.
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2 Tennessee running backs return after scoring 10 or more touchdowns in 2022. Jaylen Wright ran for 875 yards and 10 TDs on 146 carries, and Jabari Small ran for 734 yards and 13 TDs on 157 carries and caught 12 passes for 106 yards and two TDs.
3 Victories for Tennessee and one victory for Virginia in the Volunteers-Cavaliers series. Tennessee defeated Virginia 42-0 in 1927, 41-14 in 1940 and 23-22 in the Sugar Bowl to end the 1990 season. Virginia defeated the Vols 16-13 in 1980.
3 Previous neutral-field openers for Virginia. The Cavaliers lost to Pennsylvania 72-0 in Washington, D.C., in 1890, William & Mary 41-21 in Norfolk, Virginia, in 1960, and Notre Dame 36-13 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in 1989.
5 Victories without a loss for Tennessee on Sept. 2. Virginia has a 2-2 record on Sept. 2.
8 Victories and 20 losses for Virginia against SEC opponents, including a 6-15 mark in regular-season games. Saturday’s game will be the Cavaliers’ first regular-season contest against an SEC member since a 31-7 loss to South Carolina in 2003. Virginia’s most recent regular-season victory over an SEC team came in 2002, when the Cavs defeated South Carolina 34-21.
10 Non-conference games, including two bowls, for Tennessee under coach Josh Heupel. The Volunteers won all of them and scored at least 31 points in each.
18 Victories without a loss for Tennessee under coach Josh Heupel when the Volunteers are ahead at halftime. Tennessee is 0-8 under Heupel when it hasn’t led at halftime.
39 Victories, 16 losses and one tie for Tennessee against ACC opponents, including a 34-11-1 record in regular-season games. The Volunteers played two ACC opponents last season, defeating Pittsburgh 34-27 in overtime on Sept. 10 and Clemson 31-14 on Dec. 30 in the Orange Bowl.
46.1 Points per game were averaged by Tennessee last season to lead the nation in scoring in 2022. The Vols were the fifth SEC team to lead the nation in scoring, but the third in the past four seasons, joining LSU in 2019 and Alabama in 2020. The most recent program to lead the nation in scoring in consecutive seasons is Baylor in 2013, 2014 and 2015.
94 Victories, 26 losses and six ties for Tennessee in season-opening games. Virginia has an 85-39-9 season-opening record.
294 Days since Virginia’s previous game. The Cavaliers canceled their final two games of the 2022 season after players Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr. and D’Sean Perry were shot and killed.
365 Points for Virginia in the ACC preseason poll. Media members picked the Cavaliers to finish last in the league, with Virginia collecting 196 fewer points in the balloting than No. 13 Boston College.
9,034 Passing yards for QB Brennan Armstrong, the most in Virginia history. But Armstrong has transferred to North Carolina State for the 2023 season, and the Cavaliers will have Tony Muskett at quarterback against Tennessee. Muskett has thrown for 5,687 yards and 51 TDs over the past three seasons for Monmouth.
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.