Tennessee Football’s Orange team and White team went head to head inside a jam-packed Neyland Stadium on a beautiful Saturday afternoon in Knoxville.
The Vols closed down the spring slate with the Orange & White Game, played in front of more than 58,000 spectators.
Veteran quarterback Joe Milton III lead off the game with the first-team unit. Milton’s three starting wide receivers included sophomore Kaleb Webb, sophomore Chas Nimrod, and freshman Nathan Leacock. Dylan Sampson was the starting running back.
One of the storylines throughout the game was simply Tennessee’s roster of inactive players. That list included notable offensive names such as Bru McCoy, Squirrel White, Ramel Keyton, Jabari Small, and Jaylen Wright. Still, though, that gave many of Tennessee’s younger players and newcomers a chance to perform.
Former No. 1 overall prospect Nico Iamaleava was the second-team quarterback, followed by Gaston Moore as the signal caller of the third-team unit. The quarterbacks rotated in an even fashion throughout the first half with Iamaleava and Moore taking more drives than Milton in the second half.
Out of the four touchdowns on the afternoon, Moore’s arm accounted for the first two. Moore connected with Dayton Sneed on a six-yard throw in the corner of the endzone and tight end Hunter Salmon on a nine-yard touchdown pass to end the first quarter of action.
Milton then came through with the third touchdown of the day as Kaleb Webb hauled in the nice four-yard touchdown pass. The touchdown was set up by a 39-yard toss and catch from Milton to Webb on the right sideline.
Freshman running back Cameron Seldon recorded the final touchdown of the game on a crisp 24-yard run up the gut. Seldon ran with aggression and physicality in an impressive debut on Saturday.
The final score of the game came from the leg of J.T. Carver, who knocked through a 40-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.
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Here’s a look at the final offensive stats and the drive summaries from the Orange & White Game on Saturday afternoon in Knoxville.
Tennessee Quarterbacks
Joe Milton III: 9-of-13, 79 yards, 1 TD
Nico Iamaleava: 8-of-16, 112 yards
Gaston Moore: 8-of-11, 94 yards, 2 TDs
Tennessee Running Backs
DeSean Bishop: 24 carries, 90 yards
Cam Seldon: 10 carries, 45 yards, 1 rushing touchdown – 3 receptions for 43 yards
Dylan Sampson: 3 carries for 13 yards
Tennessee Wide Receivers
Kaleb Webb: 3 receptions, 50 yards, 1 touchdown
Chas Nimrod: 3 receptions, 17 yards
Nathan Leacock: 1 reception, 3 yards
Nigel Lanier: 2 receptions, 17 yards
Dayton Sneed: 2 receptions, 24 yards, 1 touchdown
Michael Bittner: 1 reception, 42 yards
Tennessee Tight Ends
Ethan Davis: 3 receptions, 53 yards
McCallan Castles: 2 receptions, 9 yards
Hunter Salmon: 1 reception, 9 yards, 1 touchdown
Orange & White Game Drives:
*Orange games in bold to easier differentiate the teams in alternating order*
White – Drive 1 (Joe Milton)
- Started: White 25-yard line
- Ended: White 28-yard line
- 3 plays for 3 yards
- Punt
Orange – Drive 1 (Nico Iamaleava)
- Started: Orange 35
- Ended: Orange 47
- 4 plays for 12 yards
- Punt
White – Drive 2 (Gaston Moore)
- Started: White 18
- Ended: Orange Endzone
- 8 plays for 82 yards
- Touchdown – Gaston Moore six-yard touchdown pass to Dalton Sneed
Orange – Drive 2 (Joe Milton)
- Started: Orange 25
- Ended: White 49
- 8 plays for 26 yards
- Punt
White – Drive 3 (Nico Iamaleava)
- Started: White 3
- Ended: White 9
- 3 plays for 6 yards
- Punt
Orange – Drive 3 (Gaston Moore)
- Started: Orange 40
- Ended: White Endzone
- 15 plays for 60 yards
- Touchdown – Gaston Moore nine-yard touchdown pass to Hunter Salmon
White – Drive 4 (Start of the Second Quarter) [Joe Milton]
- Started: White 25
- Ended: White 36
- 5 plays for 11 yards
- Punt
Orange – Drive 4 (Nico Iamaleava)
- Started: Orange 27
- Ended: White 25
- 5 plays for 48 yards
- Fumble – WR Trey Weary
White – Drive 5 (Joe Milton)
- Started: White 25
- Ended: Orange Endzone
- 7 plays for 75 yards
- Touchdown – Joe Milton four-yard touchdown pass to Kaleb Webb
Orange – Drive 5 (Nico Iamaleava)
- Started: Orange 25
- Ended: White Endzone
- 9 plays for 75 yards
- RB Cam Seldon 24-yard touchdown run
Orange – Drive 6 (Start of the Second Half/Third Quarter) [Gaston Moore]
- Started: Orange 25
- Ended: Orange 30
- 3 plays for 5 yards
- Punt
White – Drive 6 (Joe Milton)
- Started: White 15
- Ended: White 13
- 3 plays for -2 yards
- Punt
Orange – Drive 7 (Nico Iamaleava)
- Started: White 47
- Ended: White 45
- 3 plays for 2 yards
- Punt
White – Drive 7 (Gaston Moore)
- Started: White 20
- Ended: White 36
- 3 plays for 16 yards
- Interception
Orange – Drive 8 (Nico Iamaleava)
- Started: Orange 43
- Ended: Orange 48
- 4 plays for 5 yards
- Turnover on downs
White – Drive 8 (Start of the Fourth Quarter) [Nico Iamaleava]
- Started: Orange 48
- Ended: Orange 21
- 11 plays for 27 yards
- 39-yard Field Goal from J.T. Carver*
Orange – Drive 9 (Gaston Moore)
- Started: Orange 25
- Ended: Orange 33
- 6 plays for 8 yards
- End of Half
