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 three days to go, Robert Meachem, who was an All-American and All-SEC wide receiver at Tennessee during his career between 2003-06, is selected.
A Parade All-American at Booker T. Washington High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Meachem was a part of Vols' signing class in 2003 that included highly touted wide receivers Jayson Swain and Bret Smith.
Meachem had to wait to see the field at Tennessee as a freshman. A knee surgery sidelined him for the 2003 season, but found a role the following year as a redshirt freshman in 2004.
He caught 25 passes for 425 yards and four touchdowns. Meachem was the only receiver to record a 100-yard game that season, totaling five receptions for 145 yards and a score in a 37-31 win over Kentucky.
After finishing as Tennessee's leading receiver in 2005, Meachem had his most productive campaign in 2006, the same year that the Vols' offense went through resurgence under offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe.
Meachem set a single-season program record with 1,298 yards on a career-high 71 catches as the SEC's top receiver while accounting for 11 touchdowns.
His All-SEC and All-American campaign began in Tennessee's season-opener against California when he racked up 182 yards and two scores in the Vols' 35-18 rout of the Golden Bears at Neyland Stadium.
A week later, Meachem had eight catches for 115 yards and two more touchdowns. He turned in 100-yard outings vs. South Carolina, Marshall, LSU and Kentucky, capping his Tennessee career with 2,140 receiving yards and 17 touchdowns.
Meachem's record-setting three years at Tennessee did not go unnoticed. He was selected as the 27th overall pick in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft by the New Orleans Saints.
Meachem spent much of his pro career with the franchise, and was a key contributor during the Saints' Super Bowl XLIV run in 2009.
In the Tennessee record books, Meachem's productive 2006 season still stands as a program best among receivers while his six 100-yard career games is tied for third all-time.
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