The 1932 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee", "UT" or the "Vols") represented the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

in the

1932 Southern Conference football season The 1932 Southern Conference football season was the college football games played by the member schools of the Southern Conference as part of the 1932 college football season. The season began on September 17. This is the last season before ma ...

. Playing as a member of the

Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I. Southern Conference College football, football teams c ...

(SoCon), the team was led by head coach

Robert Neyland Robert Reese Neyland (; February 17, 1892 – March 28, 1962) was an American football player and coach and officer in the United States Army, reaching the rank of Brigadier general (United States), brigadier general. He served three stints as ...

, in his seventh year, and played their home games at

Shields–Watkins Field Neyland Stadium ( ) is a sports stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. It serves primarily as the home of the Tennessee Volunteers football team, but is also used to host large conventions and has been a site for several National Footba ...

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in Knox County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the Tennessee River and had a population of 190,740 at the 2020 United States census. It is the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division ...

. The 1932 Vols won nine, lost zero and tied one game (9–0–1 overall, 7–0–1 in the SoCon) and were Southern Conference champions. It was their last year in the conference before moving to the newly formed

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...

. The team was led by its backfield with Deke Brackett and

Beattie Feathers William Beattie "Big Chief" Feathers (August 20, 1909 – March 11, 1979) was an American football player and coach of football and baseball. He played college football and college basketball at the University of Tennessee and had a seven-year c ...

Schedule

Game summaries

Chattanooga

In the season opener, the Vols defeated Chattanooga 13–0.

Ole Miss

In the second week of play, Tennessee beat Ole Miss 33–0.

North Carolina

The Volunteers defeated the Tar Heels 20–7.

Alabama

*Source: Against

rival A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, the Vols won 7–3 at Legion Field in rainy conditions. Alabama scored its only points of the game when Hillman Holley connected on a 12-yard

field goal A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. Consequently, ...

in the second quarter to take a 3–0 lead. Alabama held their lead through the fourth quarter when

Johnny Cain John Lewis "Hurri" "Sugar" Cain (November 17, 1908 – August 18, 1977) was an American football player, coach of football, baseball, and tennis, and college athletics administrator. He played college football at the University of Alabama, where ...

had a punt of only 12-yards from his own endzone to give Tennessee the ball at the 12-yard line. Three plays later,

scored on a seven-yard touchdown run and with the extra point, the Volunteers took a 7–3 lead that they would not relinquish. Due to the poor weather conditions, the game was noted for both Alabama head coach Thomas and Tennessee head coach

calling for punt after punt, often on first and second down, in an attempt to gain field position advantage. As a result, Feathers punted 21 times for Tennessee, and Cain punted 19 times for Alabama. Cain's 19 punts and 914 total yards still stand as the single game school records for punts and punting yardage.

Maryville

Maryville was swamped 60–0.

Duke

*Source: In a game deemed a "thriller", the Vols beat

Wallace Wade William Wallace Wade (June 15, 1892 – October 6, 1986) was an American football player and coach of football, basketball, and baseball, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at the University of Alabama fr ...

Duke Blue Devils The Duke Blue Devils are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Duke University, located in Durham, North Carolina. Duke's athletics department features 27 varsity teams that all compete at the N ...

16–13. Feathers ran through Duke's line time and again. The highlight of the contest came when Fred Crawford intercepted a pass and raced 72 yards for a touchdown. Wynn kicked Tennessee's winning field goal. The starting lineup was Rayburn (left end), Franklin (left tackle), Ellis (left guard), Maples (center), Frank (right guard), Aitken (right tackle), Warmath (right end), Robinson (quarterback), Vaughn (left halfback), Feathers (right halfback), Middletown (fullback).

Mississippi State

Mississippi State was beaten 31–0.

Vanderbilt

*Source: Clyde Roberts and Vanderbilt fought the Vols to a scoreless tie. The game's only score was called back in the second half. Feathers caught a pass but was called out of bounds at the 27-yard line, right in front of the Vanderbilt bench.

Kentucky

The Volunteers beat the Wildcats of Kentucky 26–0.

Florida

*Source: The Vols defeated

Charlie Bachman Charles William Bachman Jr. (December 1, 1892 – December 14, 1985) was an American college football player and coach. Bachman was an Illinois native and an alumnus of the University of Notre Dame, where he played football. He served as the head ...

Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville, Florida, Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni an ...

32–13.

scored after the opening kickoff.

Players

Line

Backfield

References

{{Southern Conference football champions

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

Tennessee Volunteers football seasons Southern Conference football champion seasons College football undefeated seasons

Tennessee Volunteers football The Tennessee Volunteers football program (variously called "Vols," "UT" and "Big Orange") represents the University of Tennessee (UT). The Vols have played football for 132 seasons, starting in 1891; their combined record of 870–415–53 ( ...