College Trail: Humphrey happy he volunteered to stay at Tennessee

Nick Humphrey took the field in front of a packed house Sept. 24 at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn.

With 102,000 orange-and-white clad fans drowning the stadium in a chorus of cheers, Tennessee's football team kicked off to start the game against a familiar − and often frustrating − opponent.

The Volunteers had started the college football season with little fanfare but climbed up to No. 11 in the Associated Press Top-25 Poll. On the other side of the field was No. 20 Florida.

Humphrey had never been on the winning side of this battle. The Gators had won the past five meetings in the tenure of the former standout Jefferson athlete. Overall, Florida was 16-1 against Tennessee since 2005.

But this year felt different.

"It's crazy," Humphrey said. "I never thought I would be here, especially still six years in, but it's been awesome. Just being able to run out in front of 102,000 people and playing meaningful football on ESPN."

Florida's Jason Marshall Jr. fielded the opening kickoff on the goal line but had barely moved 15 yards when he was met by the Volunteers' kick coverage team that had already swarmed through the lines.

Marshall looked to his right hoping to make a cut back behind his blockers.

Maybe he should've looked left.

Humphrey flew in from the side and crashed over Marshall like a wave before hoping to his feet, celebrating with his teammates, and feeding off the energy from the Volunteer faithful in the stands.

"When you have 102,000 fans cheering you on for the opening kickoff and every kick after, it's easy to get juiced up and want to play hard," Humphrey said. "It's probably pretty intimidating for opposing teams, too."

Humphrey certainly delivered a message with that opening tackle. Tennessee went on to defeat Florida 38-33 and jump to No. 8 in the AP Poll. It was the fourth straight week the Volunteers climbed the rankings, from first off the list before Week 1, to top 10 in the nation.

This is why Humphrey came back for a sixth year.

"I wouldn't say I saw it coming, but last year we were in a lot of games," Humphrey said. "We played within one score of everybody into the fourth quarter, except Georgia. We even had Bama one score in the fourth. We were playing good football."

Humphrey, who red-shirted his freshman year after graduating from Jefferson in 2017, had gained an extra year of eligibility thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. He has carved out a role on special teams at Tennessee under second-year head coach Josh Heupel, who replaced the regime of Jeremy Pruitt.

Heupel led the Volunteers to a 7-5 record and bowl game in his first season. Now Tennessee is off to a 4-0 start and turning heads in the Southeastern Conference and around the nation.

"It's been a different vibe (under Heupel)," Humphrey said. "It's a more positive atmosphere. It feels a lot more like a family. ... It's hard when a new coaching staff comes in. You don't really know your role and everything is up in the air, especially when they're hired late in the coaching carousel like that. But it's definitely been a breath of fresh air with Coach Heupel and the new staff."

Humphrey and a few of his teammates marveled at the change after the team's win over Florida.

"There are a couple guys on the team are sixth-years like me and we all decided together," he said. "We were talking and we were all like, 'Dang, this has definitely been worth it.' If we can continue to win like this, it definitely makes it all worth it."

Not once has Humphrey regretted his decision to play at Tennessee. He turned down multiple scholarship offers and almost certainly a bigger role at other schools to play Division I football in the SEC.

"I wouldn't change anything," he said. "Whatever my role, it's special to just be a part of it."

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Madelyn Haut recorded a record-breaking 7 kills and 3 blocks to lead Ave Maria University's volleyball team to a 25-18, 25-18, 25-9 victory over Southeastern University (Lakeland, Fla.) on Sept. 21.

With her performance, the 2019 St. Mary Catholic Central graduate became Ave Maria's all-time leader in kills with 842, passing three-time All-Conference selection Lexy Smith, who had 839 kills in three years with the Gyrenes.

Haut, a senior, is also the school's career leader in blocks with 286.

This season, Haut is hitting .355 overall with 119 kills and 47 blocks.

Abigail Costlow, who graduated from SMCC in 2021, also had a standout performance against Southeastern. Costlow had 6 kills and 6 blocks, increasing her season totals to 86 kills and 48 blocks while hitting .366.

Ave Maria won the Sun Conference championship last year.

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Former Erie Mason quarterback Noah Beaudrie appeared in his fourth straight game Saturday for the University of Mount Union football team.

The sophomore was 3-for-5 passing for 25 yards and added 20 yards rushing on 6 carries. Mount Union defeated Ohio Northern 45-0 to improve to 4-0 overall.

On the season, Beaudrie is 14-for-18 passing for 186 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception. He also has 23 carries for 178 yards and a touchdown.

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Ida graduates Taylor Wegener and Kadie Carsten continue to make a great pair on the volleyball court.

The Siena Heights juniors are fourth and fifth on the team, respectively, in kills this season.

Carsten had her strongest game of the season Wednesday in the Saints' three-set sweep of the University of Northwestern Ohio. She hit .385 with 7 kills, 4 digs, an ace and a block. She added 7 more kills, 3 aces, 2 digs and 2 blocks Friday in a win over Lourdes.

Wegener posted 10 kills, 5 digs and 2 blocks over the past two games.

St. Mary Catholic Central graduate Payton Osborne starts at libero for Siena Heights and leads the team with 245 digs. She recorded 16 against UNOH and 13 against Lourdes.

Siena Heights is 12-6 overall and has won nine of their past 10 matches. Bedford's Karsyn Wolf also plays for the Saints.

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Do you know a local athlete who is excelling in college this season? Send us the details by e-mail to sports@monroenews.com for inclusion in a future College Trail.

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: College Trail: Humphrey happy he volunteered to stay at Tennessee