UT-Memphis cheduled for morning kickoff

Harrell has successful surgery, on way to full-recovery says Fulmer The Southeastern Conference announced Monday that Tennessee’s Sept. 30 contest at Memphis is being televised by ESPN and kicks off at 11 a.m. Central time. The game marks Tennessee’s first visit to Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium since 2000. The Vols lead the series against Memphis 19-1, including an 8-1 mark in Memphis. UT defeated the Tigers a year ago in Knoxville, 20-16, and won the 2000 meeting by a 19-17 count. Memphis’ only victory in the series was a 21-17 home triumph in 1996. Other SEC teams involved in Sept. 30 televised games feature Mississippi State at LSU on Lincoln Financial Sports (11:30 a.m. Central), Alabama at Florida on CBS (3:30 p.m. Eastern) and Georgia at Mississippi on ESPN2 (8 p.m. Central). Harrell undergoes successful surgery; Vols look ahead to Marshall Tennessee senior defensive tackle Justin Harrell underwent surgery Monday at UT Medical Center and has been released, head athletic trainer Jason McVeigh reported. Drs. Greg Mathien and Robert Ivy performed the operation. Harrell had surgery to repair a ruptured biceps tendon in his left arm, an injury he suffered in Tennessee’s Sept. 9 win over Air Force. Despite the mishap, Harrell played one final game in a Big Orange uniform Saturday against Florida and finished with three tackles. The Martin native concludes his Tennessee career with 82 tackles in 35 games played, 25 of which were starts. He had 14 tackles for loss and four sacks in addition to pulling down a pair of interceptions last season -- one of which resulted in his only career touchdown at Kentucky. “I understand Justin’s surgery went well and he’s on his way to a full recovery,” head coach Phillip Fulmer said. “I certainly can’t say enough about what Justin has meant and still means to this team. We wish him the best.” Fulmer made his comments prior to Tennessee’s 90-minute workout Monday at Haslam Field. The Vols coach said his squad needs stay focused on the task ahead. “I’m eager to get back to work,” Fulmer said. “The effort was there (Saturday). If we can improve on certain areas and play that hard, we’re looking at having a really fine season. “We’ve got to get ready for Marshall. They’re not going to feel one bit sorry for us and I’m expecting to see a whole lot of improvement.” Wilhoit selected Vols’ CAREacter Star Athlete of the Week Tennessee placekicker James Wilhoit was selected the team’s “CAREacter Star Athlete of the Week” for his outstanding off-field success. The Hendersonville native is a communications graduate headed toward earning his master’s degree in sports psychology this December. The three-time Academic All-SEC selection compiled a 3.6 grade-point average as an undergraduate and has a 3.8 GPA in graduate school. On the field, Wilhoit continues to excel. The senior is the SEC’s active career scoring leader with 249 points, a figure that ranks sixth on UT’s all-time scoring list. Wilhoit has converted on his last 11 field goal attempts dating to 2005 and 14 of his last 15. Every week the UT football coaching staff selects one student athlete as UT’s “CAREacter Star Athlete of the Week” based on five criteria. As a reward for their accomplishments, these student-athletes will be recognized each week by their local media and presented with a T-shirt and a letter acknowledging them as UT’s “Star Athlete of the Week.”