Tennessee will open its 2024 campaign against Chattanooga at Neyland Stadium on Aug. 31.

In anticipation of the season opener, VolReport is highlighting a former Vols player whose jersey number matches the amount of days until kickoff.

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With 18 days to go, Bubba Wyche, who spent the first half of his career at Tennessee as a backup before bursting onto scene during the Vols' 1967 season and finishing his career as one of the top passers in program history at the time, is selected.

Wyche was a standout player at North Fulton High School in Atlanta before signing to play for Doug Dickey and Tennessee in 1965. He played on the Vols' JV squad as a freshman and spent the 1966 season as a backup to Dewey Warren and Charlie Fulton.

Wyche remained third on the depth chart at the start of the 1967 season, but injuries plagued the quarterbacks room. Warren was injured in week 2 against Auburn, then Fulton exited the Georgia Tech game late in the first quarter a week later with an injury.

Enter Wyche, who had said in an interview in 2004 that he hadn't even taken snaps with starting center Bob Johnson before he was called on by Dickey to take over at quarterback.

Wyche was efficient in his first significant outing, going 8-of-16 passing for 121 yards and two touchdowns that led Tennessee to a 24-13 victory over the Yellow Jackets with No. 6 Alabama up next at Legion Field in Birmingham.

The Vols hadn't beaten the Crimson Tide in the previous six years leading up to the match up, but Wyche was again unfazed. Aided by a Tennessee defense that combined for six turnovers, Wyche helped the Vols to a 24-13 win to remain unbeaten.

With Wyche splitting time with Warren, Tennessee finished the regular season undefeated and won the SEC. It was recognized as national champions by Litkenhous before a bout with No. 3 Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl.

Wyche was Tennessee's full-time starter at quarterback heading into his senior season in 1968. He engineered a late drive to tie Georgia in a nationally televised season opener at Neyland Stadium, tossing the game-tying two-point conversion to Ken DeLong with no time left on the clock. Weeks later, Wyche had a hand in the Vols' second win over Alabama in as many years, a 10-9 thriller that ended on a blocked field goal as time expired.

Tennessee finished the regular season with eight wins, it's only blemish a 28-14 loss to Auburn in Birmingham before earning a Cotton Bowl bid against Texas. Wyche finished the season with a career-high 1,539 passing yards and 14 touchdowns.

Wyche played three seasons with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the Canadian Football League with stints in the World Football League through 1975.

In the Tennessee record books, Wyche ranks 23rd all-time in passing yards with 2,390 and 18 touchdowns in three seasons.

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