Dylan Sampson is only two rushing touchdowns away from Tennessee's single-season record
Dylan Sampson enters Saturday’s game against Alabama just two touchdowns short of matching Tennessee’s single-season program record. The junior running back so far has 15 rushing touchdowns in just six games.
Gene McEver holds the all-time program record with 18 rushing touchdowns in 1929, while Reggie Cobb holds the modern record with 17 scored in 1987.
McEver also holds Tennessee’s all-time career rushing touchdown record with 37 between 1928 and 1931. James Stewart holds the modern record 35 from 1991 to 1994.
“He’s always had great vision, great pace,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said Saturday night, after Sampson ran 27 times for 112 yards and three touchdowns. “Obviously he’s got good long speed, but he’s really good between the tackles.”
No. 11 Tennessee vs. No. 7 Alabama, Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC
The single-season records could be tied or broken Saturday against Alabama, with Sampson already having scored two or more rushing touchdowns in five of Tennessee’s six games this season.
He had three in the season-opening win over Chattanooga on August 31, two more a week later in the 51-10 win over NC State in Charlotte and a season-high four against Kent State, all in the first half, on September 21.
Sampson had three rushing touchdowns Saturday in Tennessee’s 23-17 win overtime win over Florida, two at Arkansas two weeks ago and one at Oklahoma.
He’s now up to 29 total touchdowns — 28 rushing, one receiving — in just 28 career games at Tennessee. Games with multiple touchdowns has been the norm, with Sampson scoring his 29 touchdowns in just 15 of his 28 games with the Vols.
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Dylan Sampson within reach of multiple Tennessee single-season rushing records
Single-season touchdowns is far from the only record Sampson could end up breaking.
Travis Stephens holds the single-season rushing yards record with 1,464. Sampson, sitting on 699 yards through six games, is on pace for 1,398 yards during the regular season.
Sampson is on pace for 236 carries. Travis Stephens holds that record, too, with 291 in 2001.
Sampson has also rushed for 100 yards or more in five of the first six games this season. Jay Graham holds the record with 11 100-yard games in 1995.
Graham also holds the record for yards per game, averaging 130.7 in 11 games in 1995. Sampson is averaging 116.5 yards per game so far.
Sampson is also averaging 5.92 yards per carry, with 699 yards on 118 attempts. The program record for yards per rush (minimum 200 carries) is 5.91, set by Chuck Webb in 1989 when he ran for 1,236 yards on 209 attempts.
Sampson is up to 1,700 career rush yards at Tennessee on 282 attempts, averaging 6.0 yards per rush.
“I think his growth, continuing to grow in the understanding of what we’re doing,” Heupel said. “But physical strength, just his development in the middle of the football field, those runs between the tackles, just continues to make a bunch of plays for us.
