Rocky Top Nation

MIAMI (NBA.com exclusive) -- Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade liked what he saw from center Jermaine O'Neal in Wednesday's 115-93 season-opening victory against New York.

O'Neal, the former Indiana Pacers All-Star now in his 14th season, finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds in perhaps his best performance in 28 regular-season games with the Heat.

"That's the (O'Neal) I like," Wade said, "And that's the (O'Neal) I disliked in Indiana."

New York, on the other hand, struggled all around. The Knicks tied a franchise record by attempting 39 3-pointers. They only made 10, which translates to a miserable 25.6 percent.

"I thought we were going to win 82 (games) this year, but now it's only 81," New York coach Mike D'Antoni said, tongue firmly planted in cheek.

Wade, who led the league in scoring last year at 30.2 points per game, had a tidy 26 points, and second-year forward Michael Beasley, the No. 2 pick of the 2008 Draft, finished with 21 points.

Overall, it was a good home opener for the Heat, which shot 56.6 percent from the field and led by as many as 31 points. After the game was tied at 46 with 2:49 left in the second quarter, the Heat went on a 44-15 run through the end of the third quarter. That allowed Miami to take a 90-62 lead into the fourth quarter, and at that point the game was over.

"We couldn't make shots, we couldn't stop them," D'Antoni said. "That's not a good combination."

The Knicks, who have had eight consecutive losing seasons, are in their second year of D'Antoni's up-tempo offense. And after one game things don't appear any more promising now than they did in last year's 32-50 season.

"A number of people did not shoot the ball well," New York point guard Chris Duhon said.

Knicks center David Lee (22 points, nine rebounds) was back to his usual pogo-stick ways, but he had very little help. Forward Al Harrington started 3-for-4 from the field but then missed eight of his next 10 shots to finish 5-for-14. Second-year forward Danilo Gallinari, the No. 6 pick of the 2008 Draft, missed six of his first nine shots and got hot after the game's outcome was determined. Reserve guard Nate Robinson missed all eight of his shots. Swingman Wilson Chandler missed nine of his first 13.

Wade, who missed eight of his first 11 shots, was more low-key than he was in last season's two home games against New York. Wade averaged 50.5 points in those contests, finishing with 46 in one game and 55 in the other. On Wednesday, Wade only flashed his dazzle. In the third quarter, after a Beasley field goal, Wade stole an inbounds pass meant for Chris Duhon, did a 360-degree turn in the air, and converted the layup for a 73-53 Miami lead.

Wade said he wasn't concerned about starting slowly on offense.

"I know what I can do in the flow of the offense," he said. "I just want to make sure everybody else is doing well."

O'Neal, who suffers from creaky knees, did just fine. Coach Erik Spoelstra thinks it's a result of O'Neal's offseason work. O'Neal, the 31-year-old known to teammates by his initials, J.O., spent six weeks working with the Heat's trainers in Miami and eight weeks working with well-known trainer Tim Grover in Chicago.

"We called him 'The young J.O.' tonight," Heat guard Daequan Cook said.

Notes: New York center Darko Milicic went down with 8:28 left in the third and left the court limping on his left leg. He returned to the bench a few minutes later. ... Former Heat guard Tim Hardaway had his jersey (No. 10) retired in a pregame ceremony. Hardaway played five-plus seasons for the Heat. Attending the ceremony were Hardaway's former Golden State teammates Mitch Richmond and Chris Mullin, the trio that formed the famed "Run TMC" combination. ... Beasley got called for back-to-back traveling violations in the second quarter as he tried to create off the dribble at small forward. ... New York rookie guard Toney Douglas, the 29th pick in the Draft, ended 1-for-4 from the field in just 6:13. ... Heat forward Udonis Haslem, a starter the past six seasons, came off the bench for eight points and nine rebounds in 30 minutes. Beasley, who played 36 minutes, got the start at power forward. Miami used former Knicks player Quentin Richardson (five points in 17 minutes) as its starter at small forward.

MIAMI (NBA.com exclusive) -- Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade liked what he saw from center Jermaine O'Neal in Wednesday's 115-93 season-opening victory against New York.

O'Neal, the former Indiana Pacers All-Star now in his 14th season, finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds in perhaps his best performance in 28 regular-season games with the Heat.

"That's the (O'Neal) I like," Wade said, "And that's the (O'Neal) I disliked in Indiana."

New York, on the other hand, struggled all around. The Knicks tied a franchise record by attempting 39 3-pointers. They only made 10, which translates to a miserable 25.6 percent.

"I thought we were going to win 82 (games) this year, but now it's only 81," New York coach Mike D'Antoni said, tongue firmly planted in cheek.

Wade, who led the league in scoring last year at 30.2 points per game, had a tidy 26 points, and second-year forward Michael Beasley, the No. 2 pick of the 2008 Draft, finished with 21 points.

Overall, it was a good home opener for the Heat, which shot 56.6 percent from the field and led by as many as 31 points. After the game was tied at 46 with 2:49 left in the second quarter, the Heat went on a 44-15 run through the end of the third quarter. That allowed Miami to take a 90-62 lead into the fourth quarter, and at that point the game was over.

"We couldn't make shots, we couldn't stop them," D'Antoni said. "That's not a good combination."

The Knicks, who have had eight consecutive losing seasons, are in their second year of D'Antoni's up-tempo offense. And after one game things don't appear any more promising now than they did in last year's 32-50 season.

"A number of people did not shoot the ball well," New York point guard Chris Duhon said.

Knicks center David Lee (22 points, nine rebounds) was back to his usual pogo-stick ways, but he had very little help. Forward Al Harrington started 3-for-4 from the field but then missed eight of his next 10 shots to finish 5-for-14. Second-year forward Danilo Gallinari, the No. 6 pick of the 2008 Draft, missed six of his first nine shots and got hot after the game's outcome was determined. Reserve guard Nate Robinson missed all eight of his shots. Swingman Wilson Chandler missed nine of his first 13.

Wade, who missed eight of his first 11 shots, was more low-key than he was in last season's two home games against New York. Wade averaged 50.5 points in those contests, finishing with 46 in one game and 55 in the other. On Wednesday, Wade only flashed his dazzle. In the third quarter, after a Beasley field goal, Wade stole an inbounds pass meant for Chris Duhon, did a 360-degree turn in the air, and converted the layup for a 73-53 Miami lead.

Wade said he wasn't concerned about starting slowly on offense.

"I know what I can do in the flow of the offense," he said. "I just want to make sure everybody else is doing well."

O'Neal, who suffers from creaky knees, did just fine. Coach Erik Spoelstra thinks it's a result of O'Neal's offseason work. O'Neal, the 31-year-old known to teammates by his initials, J.O., spent six weeks working with the Heat's trainers in Miami and eight weeks working with well-known trainer Tim Grover in Chicago.

"We called him 'The young J.O.' tonight," Heat guard Daequan Cook said.

Notes: New York center Darko Milicic went down with 8:28 left in the third and left the court limping on his left leg. He returned to the bench a few minutes later. ... Former Heat guard Tim Hardaway had his jersey (No. 10) retired in a pregame ceremony. Hardaway played five-plus seasons for the Heat. Attending the ceremony were Hardaway's former Golden State teammates Mitch Richmond and Chris Mullin, the trio that formed the famed "Run TMC" combination. ... Beasley got called for back-to-back traveling violations in the second quarter as he tried to create off the dribble at small forward. ... New York rookie guard Toney Douglas, the 29th pick in the Draft, ended 1-for-4 from the field in just 6:13. ... Heat forward Udonis Haslem, a starter the past six seasons, came off the bench for eight points and nine rebounds in 30 minutes. Beasley, who played 36 minutes, got the start at power forward. Miami used former Knicks player Quentin Richardson (five points in 17 minutes) as its starter at small forward.

1) Stop the Run - Tennessee struggled early on against the wildcat package, but picked up the slack as the game went on.  Mark Ingram was held to just 99 yards. All in all, Alabama just didn't do as good as they normally do against this Monte Kiffin defense.

 2) Control time of possesion - Tennessee did a very good job of this. Tennessee was always marching down the field and getting first downs. Problem was that they weren't converting their drives into points.

 3) Get off to good start early - Tennessee and Alabama were tied 3-3 to begin the first quarter, but going into halftime the score was 9-3 Bama. Not a great start for Tennessee.

4) Play great on special teams - Tennessee failed this part. Kickoff coverage was crappy. 2 field goals were blocked and 1 was missed. Unfortuantley, special teams cost Tennessee the game.

5) Create turnovers - Tennessee didn't get a lot of turnovers. However, the one turnover they did get was huge. Causing Mark Ingram to fumble the ball changed the game.

Here are my keys to victory for the Vols:

1) Stop the Run - If Tennessee is going to have any chance of beating Alabama they must stop Mark Ingram and the rest of the Alabama running backs.  Players such as Middle Line Backer Savion Frazier must have a great game if they want to accomplish this. Defensive lineman such as Ben Martin and Chris Walker must come out and cause trouble for Alabama's offensive line. If Tennessee can stop the run and make Alabama a one-dimensional team Alabama could be in for trouble on offense. Alabama quarterback Greg Mcelroy has struggled as of late even when Mark Ingram was having tremendous days.

2) Control time of possesion - With a such a great defense lead by Monte Kiffin it's a shame that the offense has had trouble in the past of keeping them off the field. In order for Tennessee's defense to be affective Montario Hardesty and crew must gain first downs. Both Hardesty and Bryce Brown have to be on there A-game against Alabama. If Tennessee can run the ball and keep the defense on the sidelines Alabama is in for a pleasent suprise.

3) Get off to good start early - There is no question that the Vols play better when they get off to a good start. Just ask Georgia. If Crompton can get going early and throw a couple of good 10 yard passes everything will start to come together for this offense. Tennessee needs to come out early and gain some confidence. Crompton's play seems to be 5 times better when Tennessee has a good start and hes gaining confidence.

4) Play great on special teams - One of the bad parts of this year for Tennessee has been special teams. Kickoff coverage has been absolutley horrible and Daniel Lincoln hasn't been the best either. It's extremely important for Tennessee to have good kickoff coverage or Javier Arenas and Julio Jones will be running into the endzone. It's also equally important that Daniel Lincoln connects on field goals or he could end up costing Tennessee the game. Special teams must improve in order for Tennessee to have a chance against Alabama.

5) Create turnovers - Last but not least, Tennessee needs to get into Greg Mcelroy's head and pick some of his passes off. By creating turnovers Alabama will start tear apart and the crowd will settle down. Watch out for Eric Berry as we all know he is very close to breaking the interceptions return yards record and would be more then glad to do it against Alabama. Also heisman canidate Mark Ingram might not like Eric Berry after the game either.

Tennessee Vols Head Coach Lane Kiffin

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin, who had been working under a memo of understanding, has signed a six-year, $14.25 million contract.  As agreed to when he was hired in November, Kiffin will earn $2 million in 2009, which includes pay for broadcasting responsibilities and endorsements.  His salary will gradually increase each season, topping out $2.75 million for the 2014 season.  Should Kiffin be fired without cause, he will receive a buyout between $5 million and $7.5 million.  Kiffin must inform Tennessee athletics director Mike Hamilton if he is interested in any other college or professional coaching job or is approached about another position. He will owe the university between $200,000 and $1 million should he take another job.

Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press

Lane Kiffin(left) and Ed Orgeron(right) arrive via helicopter to the M.L. King vs. Stephenson game.

Just when everyone thought Lane Kiffin couln't get anymore crazy, he did.  Both Lane Kiffin and Ed Orgeron hoped in a helicopter and flew down to Martin Luther King High School to watch them play Stephenson in a game that featured many D-1 prospects. One of those prospects was Mike Thornton, a Rivals 250 defensive tackle.  Mike Thorton plays at Stephenson and is one of the most underated players in the Class of 2010. After the game Thorton said this to ESPN, "It blew me away, you know," Thornton said. "We have a linebacker that goes to Tennessee [Nigel Mitchell-Thornton], so it would be nice for me to get up there and play on the team with him. I am going to give them a look. I am going to give Tennessee a look."  Tennessee also went after current Florida commit, Mack Brown. Brown is a highly rated tailback who has been commited to Florida for quite amount of time.  Brown had this to say about Kiffin, "Yeah, he was at my school earlier," said Brown, the state's top-ranked tailback and a Florida commitment. "I ran into him, shook his hand."  Asked if Kiffin was trying to get him to flip on the Gators, Brown said politely, "Yes, sir."  Both Mike Thorton and Mack Brown could potentially return the favor and visit UT.  Without a doubt this visit from the coaching staff paid off for UT.

Orgeron (right) and Mitchell-Thornton watch the game from the sidelines.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin didn't defeat Florida as promised. He did deliver on another guarantee with a 45-19 win over the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday.

"[Kiffin] basically made a promise to us that we wouldn't lose to them anymore, forever or until he leaves," Volunteers safety Eric Berry said. "He's not going to let Georgia beat us."

The first-year coach got some help from Jonathan Crompton, who passed for a career-high 310 yards and threw for four touchdowns.

Kiffin had emphasized the Georgia game to his players due to its importance in recruiting. Because the state of Tennessee doesn't produce many elite prospects, coaches traditionally have recruited in Georgia, and 12 current Vols hail from the bordering state -- including Berry.

"I told the guys last night, I don't know all the Tennessee history or tradition of all the matchups," Kiffin said. "There are a lot of great teams in this conference. But I told them, to me, this is the biggest matchup."

It was his first Southeastern Conference victory and kept the Volunteers (3-3, 1-2) from going 0-3 in the league for a second season in a row. Georgia (3-3, 2-2) dropped to 3-3 for the first time under coach Mark Richt.

"They played better. They coached better. It's very obvious their team was a better team by a long shot," Richt said.

The Vols' passing game had faltered at times this season, with Crompton struggling with his accuracy and his receivers often dropping passes when he was on target.

But by halftime Saturday, Crompton had already thrown for 205 yards and three touchdowns. He finished 20-for-27.

Georgia's offense never reached the red zone, and the Tennessee defense held it to 241 yards compared with the Vols' 472.

The Bulldogs found other ways to put up points. Brandon Boykin scored on his second 100-yard kickoff return of the season, and Bacarri Rambo returned Crompton's interception 28 yards for a TD.

Blair Walsh kicked a 52-yard field goal, and Zach Renner blocked a punt by Chad Cunningham that sailed through the end zone for a safety.

"I don't know that I've ever been involved in a game where the defense didn't let a team into the red zone one time," Kiffin said.

Crompton was a perfect 4-for-4 for 67 yards on a drive late in the first half, finding Marsalis Teague on a 5-yard touchdown pass for a 21-10 lead with 2:40 left. He also connected with Gerald Jones on a 51-yard score, the Vols' longest pass of the season.

Despite being Tennessee's most productive receiver returning from last season, Jones had struggled with drops and mistakes while recovering from an ankle injury and wrist surgery. He had a season-best 105 yards receiving and two touchdowns.

It was Georgia's Joe Cox who played the role of struggling quarterback. Cox finished 19-for-34 with 146 yards and no touchdowns.

On the opening drive of the third quarter, Cox fumbled a snap, recovered and threw to Tennessee's Dennis Rogan while under pressure. The interception set up a 30-yard field goal by Daniel Lincoln to give the Vols a 24-12 lead.

"It's so frustrating to come out and have so many things go wrong," Cox said. "It's embarrassing. We are not doing the things we need to do as players."

The SEC's leading receiver, Georgia's A.J. Green, finished with only 60 yards on eight catches. Its leading rusher, Tennessee's Montario Hardesty, had 97 yards on the ground and a touchdown.

Richt opened his career by winning four out of his first five meetings with Tennessee, but the Vols have won three of the last four.

The game has often been one of the SEC East's premier matchups, but for the first time in 38 meetings neither team was ranked coming in.

"We've got a long way to go to become a good football team," Richt said.

Tennessee Volunteers VS. Georgia Bulldogs

Saturday, October 10th at 12:21pm EST - Neyland Stadium, Knoxville, Tenn.

Rankings: Tennessee and Georgia are both unranked

Surface: Tifway Bermuda grassed mowed at ? inch height which drains 12 inches an hour thanks partially to a 16 inch crown in the center of the field.

Television: SEC Network with Dave Neal, Andre Ware and Cara Capuano

Radio:The Vol Network, station listings in your area, www.utsports.com, XM Satellite Radio Ch.

200, WIVK-fm 107.7

Bob Kesling, play-by-play

Tim Priest, color analyst

Mike Stowell, sideline

Weather: Forecast for Knoxville, Tn

Traffic: Gameday traffic

Vol Walk: The team walks to the stadium at 10:30am est. Walk starts at the Torchbearer at Circle Park

Pride of the Southland Procession: The band marches to the stadium at 10:35am est.

Kickoff call in show: The Vol Network's 90 minute pre-game call in starts outside of gate 21 on the hill at 10:45pm est.

Toyota Volunteer Village: Located at Humanities Plaze gates open at 9am est.

Travel guide: Traveling to Neyland Stadium

The Coaches: Lane Kiffin is in his 1st season at Tennessee and has a 2-2 record. The Volunteers' offensive coordinator is Jim Chaney and the defensive coordinator is Monte Kiffin.

Mark Richt is in his 9th season at Georgia and has a record of 85-24 as the Bulldogs head man. Mike Bobo is his offensive coordinator and Willie Martinez is his defensive coordinator.

The Series: Tennessee leads 20-16-2

Injuries:

DE - Chris Walker - back, probable

WR - Gerald Jones - ankle, probable

LB - Greg King - knee, doubtful

OL - Vladimir Richard - knee, doubtful

WR - Austin Rogers - knee, out for the year

LB - Nick Reveiz - knee, out for the year

RB - Toney Williams - knee, out for the year

Latest News

Chalk Talk with the Coach

How they match-up

Third quarter has been a Vols disaster

Pop Culture: Riding coasters with David Oku

Priceless Images

Brice's off the beaten path

Official visitors

Tennessee depth chart

Statistics

Georgia depth chart

Statistics

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Jonathan Crompton threw for two touchdowns as Tennessee turned to its unsteady passing game to beat Ohio 34-23 Saturday night.

Crompton threw a 26-yard screen pass to Bryce Brown to give the Vols (2-2) a 31-20 lead with 2:38 in the third quarter and lobbed a 3-yard scoring strike to Brandon Warren at the end of the first.

With a stable of tough running backs, the Vols relied on their strong running game in their first three games to protect the turnover-prone passing game. Against the Bobcats, they rushed for 177 yards while Crompton completed 17 of 34 passes for 222 yards.

Ohio (2-2) kept Tennessee uncomfortable by taking advantage of mistakes and passing for 319 yards against a Vols defense that entered the game allowing an average 88.33 yards by air per game.

Crompton threw his eighth interception of the season to Noah Keller, who returned it 10 yards to the Tennessee 30. Theo Scott connected with LaVon Brazill on a 2-yard touchdown pass four plays later, giving the Bobcats a 14-7 lead with 7:08 in the first quarter.

Scott finished 30-for-52. Brazill had 92 yards on eight catches, and Taylor Price added 90 yards on four catches.

Chris Garrett took advantage of the Vols' poor special teams coverage and returned a kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown.

Tennessee, which entered the game ranked fifth in total defense in the FBS, held the Bobcats to only 21 yards rushing on 17 carries.

The Vols were also strong on the ground on offense. Montario Hardesty ran 20 times for 140 yards and an 11-yard touchdown and now has 1,531 career yards rushing.

Bryce Brown added 56 yards rushing and caught two passes for 60 yards, including a 34-yard catch on the second play of the game.

Tennessee will have a tough time regrouping before facing Auburn at home next week with several Vols leaving the game because of injury. Coach Lane Kiffin said starting middle linebacker Nick Reveiz was likely lost for the season after taking a hard hit on his right knee.

Even though rain earlier in the day kept the attendance at Neyland Stadium down, the 95,535 in attendance made up the second-largest crowd in Ohio's history.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- No. 1 Florida didn't embarrass Tennessee and its new coach, just beat them behind Tim Tebow and a stingy defense.

Tebow ran for 76 yards and a touchdown, Caleb Sturgis kicked three field goals and the Gators opened Southeastern Conference play with a 23-13 victory over the Volunteers on Saturday.

The Gators (3-0, 1-0) won their fifth straight in the series and set a school record with their 13th consecutive victory.

Florida started counting down for this one more than nine months ago, right after Lane Kiffin vowed to sing "Rocky Top" all night long after beating the Gators. Kiffin also riled up Florida with his false allegations of NCAA violations by Florida coach Urban Meyer.

The Gators downplayed Kiffin's comments publicly, but privately vowed to make him pay on the field.

Meyer and Kiffin exchanged a quick handshake when it ended. Meyer then spent more time with several Tennessee players, offering them congratulations on a game well played.

Tebow, return man Brandon James and the defense did most of the damage -- no surprise, because all three have given the Vols fits the last three years.

Tebow completed 14 of 19 passes for 115 yards, and had two turnovers that Tennessee (1-2, 0-1) turned into 10 points. James returned three kickoffs for 97 yards, helping set up Florida's first 13 points. The defense harassed Jonathan Crompton and twice held the Vols to short field goals when they were in position for touchdowns.

Ahmad Black also intercepted Crompton on fourth down with about 2 minutes to play, ending Tennessee's last chance at knocking off the defending national champions.

The Gators didn't have a chance to run up the score like many thought they might. They didn't rub it in, either. In fact, the postgame celebration was about as conservative as the game plan.

The most fun Florida fans seemed to have was singing their version of "Rocky Top" in the closing seconds. "Rocky Top, you'll always be, second in the SEC," they sang.

After two nifty 4-yard runs by Tebow, the Gators looked like they would put the game away. But Tebow fumbled at the 4-yard line, and Tennessee scored seven plays later to make it 23-13.

It was Tebow's second turnover of the game. He threw an interception in the first half that Tennessee turned into a field goal.

Otherwise, Tebow was tough to stop.

He ran 24 times in what surely will be called a boring game plan. It appeared as if Florida's coaching staff didn't think their offensive line could block long enough to find receivers down field, or maybe the receivers just couldn't get open.

Either way, this was clear: Florida really misses Percy Harvin.

The Gators may have had some excuses. They played without receiver Deonte Thompson, one of their deep threats, and Tennessee safety Eric Berry seemed to be all over the field. He was blitzing Tebow on one play, blanketing receivers the next and wreaking havoc on Florida's offense.

Meyer turned to Tebow.

His best plays were short gains late in the game. He started right on a third-and-3 play, looked to throw and then cut back left and headed across field. He eluded Wes Brown's grasp, then tiptoed down the sideline for a 4-yard gain. Instead of possibly being forced to punt, the Gators scored a touchdown to make it 23-6.

On the next possession, Tebow used a nasty spin move to escape Berry and Gerald Williams, then hit Dennis Rogan so hard the defender's helmet flew off.

Crompton didn't do nearly as much for the Vols.

He was 11 of 19 passing for 93 yards, with two interceptions. He also was sacked once. Tennessee clearly wanted Montario Hardesty and Bryce Brown to handle most of the load. Hardesty ran 20 times for 96 yards and a touchdown. Brown added 21 yards.

They might have found it a bit easier after Florida linebacker Brandon Spikes injured his ankle early in the game and eventually left the game.