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Wiedmer: Better late than never for Big Orange Caravan stop

Tennessee football coach Butch Jones signs the back of Abigail Lambert's jersey during the Big Orange Caravan's visit to Chattanooga in May 2016.
Tennessee football coach Butch Jones signs the back of Abigail Lambert's jersey during the Big Orange Caravan's visit to Chattanooga in May 2016. Tennessee football coach Butch Jones signs the back of Abigail Lambert's jersey during the Big Orange Caravan's visit to Chattanooga in May 2016.

By Mark Wiedmer 4 min read

photo Mark Wiedmer

Revamped. Fan friendly. A social media station. Cornhole.

These were just some of the buzz words that accompanied a Tuesday morning news release from the University of Tennessee that its long-running Big Orange Caravan event not only was alive and well for 2017, but that our town would be its first stop on Saturday, June 3, at the First Tennessee Pavilion.

Oh, and Tennessee football coach Butch Jones is expected to be there as well, along with new athletic director John Currie and the veteran voice of the Vols, Bob Kesling.

Now if they could just find a way to guarantee that Jones and his pigskin Vols will land in the SEC title game for the first time in his five years on the job, all would be right in the Big Orange universe.

But for those with serious concerns that the Caravan would even take place at all this year, this was welcome news. Or as Currie noted in the release: “I’m excited to hit the road, travel across the state of Tennessee with many of our coaches and connect with our fans to thank them for the role they play in the success of Tennessee Athletics and our university as a whole.”