1963 Tennessee Volunteers football team

1963 Tennessee Volunteers football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	5–5 (3–5 SEC)
Head coach	Jim McDonald (1st season)
Home stadium	Neyland Stadium

1963 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 7 Ole Miss $	5	–	0	–	1			7	–	1	–	2
No. 5 Auburn	6	–	1	–	0			9	–	2	–	0
No. 8 Alabama	6	–	2	–	0			9	–	2	–	0
Mississippi State	4	–	1	–	2			7	–	2	–	2
LSU	4	–	2	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Georgia Tech	4	–	3	–	0			7	–	3	–	0
Florida	3	–	3	–	1			6	–	3	–	1
Tennessee	3	–	5	–	0			5	–	5	–	0
Georgia	2	–	4	–	0			4	–	5	–	1
Vanderbilt	0	–	5	–	2			1	–	7	–	2
Kentucky	0	–	5	–	1			3	–	6	–	1
Tulane	0	–	6	–	1			1	–	8	–	1
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1963 Tennessee Volunteers football team (variously "Tennessee", "UT" or the "Vols") represented the University of Tennessee in the 1963 NCAA University Division football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Jim McDonald, in his first and only year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of five wins and five losses (5–5 overall, 3–5 in the SEC).

The rivalry game against Kentucky was one of only 6 games not to be canceled or postponed due to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy the day before. It went ahead as scheduled.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 21	Richmond*	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN	W 34–6	24,842	[1]
September 28	Auburn	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)	L 19–23	35,000	[2]
October 5	Mississippi State	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN	L 0–7	24,500	[3]
October 12	Georgia Tech	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)	L 7–23	51,527	[4]
October 19	at No. 9 Alabama	Legion Field Birmingham, AL (Third Saturday in October)	L 0–35	53,454	[5]
October 26	Chattanooga*	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN	W 49–7	22,000	[6]
November 9	at Tulane	Tulane Stadium New Orleans, LA	W 26–0	10,000	[7]
November 16	vs. No. 3 Ole Miss	Crump Stadium Memphis, TN (rivalry)	L 0–20	27,022	[8]
November 23	at Kentucky	McLean Stadium Lexington, KY (rivalry)	W 19–0	35,000	[9]
November 30	Vanderbilt	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (rivalry)	W 14–0	21,696	[10]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Team players drafted into the NFL

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Dick Evey	Tackle	1	14	Chicago Bears
Bob Zvolerin	Tackle	12	158	Washington Redskins
Ed Beard	Tackle	14	183	San Francisco 49ers

^[11]

References

1. "Tennessee romps over UR, 34–6". Richmond Times Dispatch. September 22, 1963. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Ol' devil Sidle does Vols in, 23–19". The Birmingham News. September 29, 1963. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Mississippi State Bulldogs edge Volunteers, 7–0". Johnson City Press. October 6, 1963. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Lothridge guides Tech in rout of Tennessee". The Commercial Appeal. October 13, 1963. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Bama passes crush Tennessee by 35–0". The Courier-Journal. October 20, 1963. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "'Hungry' Vols chew up Mocs, 49–7". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. October 27, 1963. Retrieved September 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Vols cut down Green Wave, 26–0". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. November 10, 1963. Retrieved September 20, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Rebels rout Vols". The Bristol Herald Courier. November 17, 1963. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Tennessee runs past Kentucky, 19–0". Messenger-Inquirer. November 24, 1963. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Vols top Vandy 14 to 0". The Courier-Journal. December 1, 1963. Retrieved May 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "1964 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 8, 2012.