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.

TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM

With 21 days to go, Stanley Morgan, who played multiple positions at Tennessee and accounted for more than 4,600 all-purpose yards during his career between 1973-76, is selected.

A high school football standout from Easley, South Carolina, Morgan signed with the Vols under head coach Bill Battle in 1973.

As a freshman that season, Morgan he played mainly at wide receiver, totaling 22 receptions for 522 yards and four touchdowns.

Morgan swelled those numbers the following season as a sophomore in 1974. Splitting time between running back and receiver, he ran the ball 128 times for 723 yards and 11 touchdowns, while catching 10 passes for another 234 yards and two scores.

Morgan factored into the return game, taking back 29 punts, including one for a touchdown and earned All-SEC honors from multiple media outlets for his contributions at two different positions on offense.

Morgan had his most productive season in 1975, featuring primarily at running back where he tallied 809 yards and eight touchdowns on 133 attempts.

In Tennessee’s season opener against Maryland, Morgan scored twice, once on a 50-yard run and again on a 70-yard punt return.

In the final game of his junior year, Morgan set a program record by becoming the first player to rush for more than 200 yards after posting 201 in a win over Hawaii.

By the time Morgan’s college career had ended in 1976, he had combine for 4,7642 all-purpose yards, which still stands as a program record while his 39 career touchdowns are tied for the modern record.

Morgan was selected by the New England Patriots as the 25th overall pick in the 1977 NFL Draft.

He played 13 seasons with the franchise, making All-Pro twice and earning Pro Bowl invites four times, including in 1979 when he led the league in receiving touchdowns with 12.

Morgan set a number of franchise records during his career with the Patriots, including single-game receiving yards with 170 on five receptions against the Baltimore Colts in 1978 only to break the record two years later with 182 receiving yards vs. the Miami Dolphins in 1981.

That record stood for 17 years.

Morgan is a member of both the University of Tennessee Athletics and Patriots Halls of Fame.

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