Tennessee basketball super senior John Fulkerson has long embodied two sayings at the University of Tennessee.
The Kingsport, Tennessee native is without a doubt a “Vol For Life” and has always took Tennessee basketball’s catch phrase “it’s not about me” to heart.
Fulkerson showed that when he implored his teammates to stop chanting “Fulky” in the locker room after the then-junior’s 27 point performance at Rupp Arena led to a comeback win over Kentucky.
The 6-foot-9 power forward has inked Name, Image and Likeness deals with both Pal’s Sudden Service and Mayfield since the end of the 2020-21 season. Now, Fulkerson is looking to give a portion of the money back to UT.
Monday, the super senior announced that he is donating a dollar to the Tennessee Fund for every single point the Tennessee basketball team scores this season.
“This year, I’ve been very blessed to capitalize on some great NIL opportunities,” Fulkerson said in a video on his Twitter account. “Those opportunities would never have been possible without the amazing report I’ve received over the last several years from so many people across the athletics department and campus. With our season about to begin, I really felt called to give back.”
Tennessee scored 1,941 points last season. However, the schedule was shortened due to COVID-19 and the Vols struggled on offense.
The Vols scored a total of 2,079 points during Fulkerson’s junior season and 3,035 points during his sophomore season.
Fulkerson is looking for a bounce back season after struggling last winter. Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said that the big man was battling injuries and dealing with COVID-19 fatigue after contracting the virus before the season.
The left hander went from averaging 13.7 points per game as a junior to 9.5 points per game as a sophomore.
After suffering a thumb injury this preseason, Fulkerson is questionable for Tuesday night’s season opener against UT-Martin. The Vols and Skyhawks tip off at 7 p.m. ET. SEC Network is broadcasting the game.
