Tennessee (8-4) hasn’t finished with back-to-back nine-win seasons since 2005-06, but has a very good chance to change that tomorrow evening.
As the Vols gear up for their Music City Bowl meeting with Nebraska (9-3), it’s been confirmed that Cornhuskers starting quarterback Tommy Armstrong, Jr. will not play due to a lingering hamstring injury.
Instead, he could serve as the “emergency guy,” if first- and second-stringers Ryker Fyfe and Zack Darlington are forced to leave the game.
“I’ve been doing some work these past couple of weeks and maybe I could be an emergency guy,” Armstrong said on Wednesday, per HuskerOnline. “We haven’t decided yet, as we are still talking to the trainers. We are still taking it a day at a time. I might just be an emergency guy for Zack and Ryker, but right now we are still figuring that out.”
Armstrong ends his college career with 8,871 passing yards and 67 touchdowns.
Fyfe, also a senior, has completed 70-of-129 (54.3 percent) of his pass attempts for 800 yards, eight touchdowns and six interceptions in his four years as a reserve in Lincoln. Armstrong says the Nebraska offense should not look any different with him under center.
“This team does not skip a heartbeat when it comes to me playing or Ryker,” Armstrong said. “I think that just shows how much (Fyfe) has improved and how much he’s challenged himself and earned the respect of his teammates.”
The Music City Bowl is set for a 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff on ESPN.
Tyler Waddell is a member of the Saturday Down South news team. He brings over five years of professional journalism experience and is closing in on a Bachelor's in sports management. Follow him on Twitter (@Tyler_Waddell).
