The University of Tennessee All-Access Football Vault

by Thomas J. Mattingly, Heath Shuler (Afterword), Peyton Manning (Foreword by)

From the first game in 1891 through the 2008 season, The University of Tennessee All-Access® Football Vault® explores the history of the Vol football program. But what makes this detailed scrapbook unique are the vintage photographs, artwork and memorabilia discovered on the UT campus. Throughout this book, Vol fans will find reproductions of old game program covers, historic tickets, vintage bumper stickers and more. Collectibles include a 1909 Central Kentucky game booklet, a 1926 photo of Gen. Robert R. Neyland with his coaching staff, a 1938 LSU game ticket, a 1950s-style pennant, the famous 1964 Doug Dickey-Bob Woodruff photo taken at the train station and notes from the 1998 BCS National Championship Game. No Vol fan should be without this home archive of Tennessee s long and illustrious football history.

128 pages, Hardcover

First published August 30, 2006

Reviews

[David Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

The University of Tennessee Football Vault: The Story of the Tennessee Volunteers, 1891-2006 by Tom Mattingly (Whitman Publishing 2006) (796.33) (3770).

This is a great oversized collectible volume that is constructed as a pseudo-scrapbook of memorabilia from the Tennessee Volunteers’ first 115 years of college football. I had never even heard of this book until I found it still in its presentation case for $3.00 at my local used book store; I purchased this used HB copy in good condition from McKay’s on 6/1/22.

All of the good stuff is in here if you’re a Volunteer fan (like me). No one else on earth would be remotely interested in this book unless they are a UT fan or possibly an Alabama Crimson Tider who is looking to move on and move up to the Big Orange.

My rating: 7.25/10, finished 4/15/23 (3770).

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[laurel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arranged chronologically by coach, the University of Tennessee Football Vault by Tom Mattingly describes the games and individuals that shaped the history of the UT Vols. I received this book for free and felt I should look through it, esp. as a UT alum and former student archivist. Well designed with neat reproductions of memorabilia for you to pull out and play with (and decorate your walls), such as postcards, newspaper articles, and pennants, this was made for viewing not for reading. A great coffee table book and for looking up quick trivia about the coaches or specific major games. I think a basic chronology of major events in the beginning would have been a great touch, but oh well...

As a fan of history and not of football, I'm not the prime target audience for Mattingly's book. So it shouldn't be surprising that I was a bit disappointed about the poor writing and lack of social context to the material. The book is primarily a list of events with no analysis or a thorough discussion of the events' backgrounds, except for when it comes to the hiring, firing, and retirement of coaches. But that's probably good enough for UT football enthusiasts, who aren't historians, and when it comes down to it, Mattingly describes the most important events as well as he could, and like I said it's a beautiful book with just enough bright orange for any UT alum.