The Chancellor speaks on THE Team

[PirateVOL]

Vols ride into Omaha on a wave of hope and optimism

Letter from Chancellor Plowman in the KNS

It’s hard to pinpoint the exact moment I knew this season was special.

Maybe it was as early as February, when shortstop Liam Spence hit the first walk-off grand slam of the season against Georgia Southern.

Maybe it was when outfielder Evan Russell tied a single-game record with three home runs against LSU in March.

Or when he did it again against Vanderbilt in April.

But by the time No. 1 Arkansas came to town last month — when we were able to safely fill Lindsey Nelson Stadium for the first time in two years and Peyton Manning took to the mound to throw the first pitch — there was no question that this team and this season were extraordinary.

My love for baseball began when my own sons played. It’s relaxing to give yourself over to the game, to focus on nothing but balls and strikes — as long as your son isn’t the pitcher.

Of course, this season for the Vols has been anything but relaxing, but maybe that’s what we needed.

It would be an understatement to say the past year and a half has been hard — on our student-athletes, our campus, our entire state.

The crisis we have endured from the pandemic is unlike anything most of us have seen in our lifetimes. And while I believe we are stronger for overcoming and learning from the challenges we’ve faced, this has been a year of overwhelming grief, anxiety and heartache.

To have this exceptional team come along at this pivotal moment feels almost serendipitous.

Here we are, full of hope and optimism again, cheering on a team that has reminded us what it’s like to put one another first, to build something meaningful, to feel unbridled joy.

When Max Ferguson hit a walk-off home run against Arkansas, it was the most spectacular sports moment I’d ever witnessed in person. That is, until Drew Gilbert hit the walk-off grand slam in the NCAA tournament opener two weeks ago.

The euphoria that rippled through Lindsey Nelson felt like a release 18 months in the making. I saw fans of all ages hugging strangers, yelling wildly and generally losing their minds.

After we sold out both Super Regional games in under an hour, our fans let us know — rather emphatically — that they wanted to be together to cheer on the Vols. We listened.

Director of Athletics Danny White and his team took a suggestion from VFL Jayson Swain and quickly planned the Big Orange Block Party. Thousands of fans brought their families and their lawn chairs to a stretch of asphalt alongside left field so they could watch the games together on a big screen.

The joy of celebrating this team has brought together Vols of all walks. This weekend, as I visited with fans at the block party, in the student section and throughout the stadium, I met dozens of people who just wanted to be part of this historic season.

Eva Sparks, a sophomore from Cookeville studying kinesiology, shared with me the challenges and triumphs of her first year at UT. Michael Clay, a longtime fan, traveled to the game from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. I chatted with players’ families, including Chad Dallas’ parents, who let me in on why everyone calls him Cheese.

State and local elected officials were as locked into the moment as the rest of us, sitting through torrential rain one day and muggy heat the next. Secretary of State Tre Hargett introduced me to his son, Cole, who will be a UT freshman next year. I watched former Sen. Lamar Alexander, baseball cap on, pose for pictures and shake hands.

I was one of many fans to get a photo with Grant Williams, who played in the NBA playoffs then made a trip to Knoxville for the Super Regionals. I saw John Fulkerson at every game, just being Fulky — getting water for others, taking pictures with kids, crashing live interviews and making everyone around him smile.

The past few weeks have been a reminder of the power of sports to bring people together. Nothing unites Tennesseans like their love for this university.

This fall, more than 30,000 students will call our campus and the Knoxville community home. We will celebrate the return of traditions like the Vol Walk and Torch Night, where we welcome new students by passing them the Torch of Preparation. We will once again fill our classrooms, our labs, our residence halls and our stadiums.

As we come together again, we will bring with us the resilience we have found through this pandemic, the enthusiasm that has built in our fan base these past few weeks and the Volunteer spirit that has always been at the core of who we are.

That spirit, built around a sense of community and support for others, is contagious. I see it every day on our campus and across our state.

I also see it in this team that has welcomed us all to be part of the legacy they’re building. The way they play — for one another, with grit and resilience — and the leadership and support of Coach Vitello have carried them, and us, throughout this season.

Very good things lie ahead on Rocky Top — and hopefully in Omaha.

(Or Oma-HA, as Peyton would say.)