How It Happened: No. 15 Tennessee opens season by hammering Chattanooga, 69-3

Nico Iamaleava passed for 314 yards and three touchdowns and Dylan Sampson ran 12 times for 124 yards and three more scores … and that was all in the first half. No. 15 Tennessee ran circles around visiting Chattanooga Saturday afternoon at Neyland Stadium, opening the 2024 season with a 69-3 win over the visiting Mocs in Knoxville.

Here’s how it happened, as it happened:

First Quarter

Tennessee 7, Chattanooga 0 (11:09): The Vols got the ball first and went straight down the field, converting a fourth-and-2 at the Chattanooga 7-yard line and scoring two plays later on a Dylan Sampson touchdown run. The drive covered 65 yards in 11 plays, taking 3:43 off the clock. Nico Iamaleava went 3-for-3 for 19 yards while making his first career start at Neyland Stadium.

Tennessee 14, Chattanooga 0 (8:34): The second drive for the Vols started at the Chattanooga 36-yard line after Joshua Josephs recovered a fumble forced by Tyree West. The needed just four plays to get back into the end zone, with Iamaleava finding tight end Ethan Davis on a 4-yard touchdown pass.

Tennessee 21, Chattanooga 0 (7:18): Touchdown No. 3 needed just two plays. Iamaleava completed a 23-yard pass to Chris Brazzell on first down then threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Dont’e Thornton. The drive went 59 yards and needed just 26 seconds.

Tennessee 24, Chattanooga (3:50): Tennessee’s fourth drive included a 59-yard bomb from Iamaleava to Thornton, but it stalled at the Chattanooga 16-yard line. The Vols settled for a 36-yard Max Gilbert field goal. 

Second Quarter

Tennessee 31, Chattanooga 0 (14:03): Iamaleava went deep again, this time over the middle to Bru McCoy on a 37-yard connection to set the Vols up with first-and-goal at the Chattanooga 3-yard line. Sampson scored on the next play to cap a six-play, 78-yard drive that tool 1:59.

Tennessee 38, Chattanooga 0 (10:14): Iamaleava to Thornton. Again. This time it was a 10-yard touchdown pass for Tennessee’s fifth touchdown of the day. The catch gave Thornton three catches for 105 yards and two touchdowns — after catching 13 passes for 224 yards and one touchdown in nine games — last season and made Iamaleava 19-for-22 for 282 yards and three touchdowns.  

Tennessee 45, Chattanooga 0 (6:43): Sampson handled Tennessee’s seventh scoring drive all on his own. The junior running back ran for 56 yards on first down, before being pushed out at the 4-yard line, then scored on the next play. It gave him 124 yards on 12 carries with three touchdowns.

Halftime

Tennessee finished the first half with 503 yards of total offense. Iamaleava was 22-for-28 for 314 yards and three touchdowns and Sampson ran 12 time for 124 yards and three touchdowns. McCoy had six catches for 89 yards, Thornton caught three passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns and Chris Brazzell caught three passes for 44 yards. 

The Vols defensively held Chattanooga to 83 total yards, giving up 51 passing yards and 32 rushing yards. The Vols had one sack, four tackles for loss and created one turnover, recovering a fumble in the first quarter.

Third Quarter

Tennessee 45, Chattanooga 3 (10:10): The Mocs got on the board on their first drive of the second half, kicking a 43-yard field goal to cap a nine-play, 50-yard drive that took 4:50 off the clock.

Tennessee 48, Chattanooga 3 (7:15): Tennessee backup quarterback Gaston Moore replaced Iamaleava to start the second half and took the Vols on a nine-play, 45-yard scoring drive that ended with a 42-yard field goal. 

Tennessee 55, Chattanooga 3 (1:13): Redshirt freshman running back DeSean Bishop scored his first career Tennessee touchdown on a 22-yard run with just over a minute left in the third quarter.

Fourth Quarter

Tennessee 62, Chattanooga 3 (4:06): Running back Khalifa Keith ran in from a yard out with 4:06 left in the fourth quarter, capping a 17-play, 80-yard drive that took 7:05 off the clock.

Tennessee 69, Chattanooga 3 (1:07): Freshman defensive end Jordan Ross returned a blocked punt 13 yards for a touchdown to make it a 66-point lead with 67 seconds left.