College Football: The Mount Rushmore for the 30 best programs of all time
By Brad Weiss
Tennessee: Peyton Manning, Reggie White, Johnny Majors, Robert Neyland
The Tennessee Volunteers have long been one of the more dominant programs in college football and are winners of six national championships. With over 830 wins as a program, the Volunteers have been the winners of 16 conference titles, producing 40 All-Americans in 121 seasons.
Peyton Manning
Long before he was “The Sheriff” at the NFL level, Peyton Manning was setting all kinds of records as the starting quarterback for the Volunteers. Manning stayed four years at Tennessee, placing himself in the Heisman Trophy talk three times while becoming an All-American quarterback. He was the best quarterback in college football coming out of school and went on to have a Hall of Fame NFL career with the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos.
Reggie White
A native of Chattanooga, Tennessee, Reggie White stayed home to play for the Volunteers and would become an absolute monster at getting after the quarterback. White had a tremendous career at Tennessee but really took off as a senior, where he racked up 15 sacks. In fact, his career sack record stood for over 30 years. The school retired his No. 92 jersey.
Johnny Majors
A coach and player for the Volunteers, Johnny Majors is a guy who definitely belongs on the school’s Mount Rushmore. Majors helped lead the Volunteers to three SEC titles, taking home conference Most Valuable Player honors on two occasions. An All-American, Majors finished second to Notre Dame’s Paul Hornung in the 1956 Heisman vote. He is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.
Robert Neyland
The man who they named the current stadium after, Robert Neyland served as the Tennessee head coach during the years 1926 through 1952, where he made three stints at the helm. A defensive genius, Neyland posted a 173-31-12 record as head coach of the Volunteers, winning four national titles, five SEC championships, and was named the SEC Coach of the Year on four occasions.