He was at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska, in his role as head student equipment manager for the Vols when they vanquished Texas A&M, 6-5, to claim the national championship.

“To be honest with you, it didn’t seem real,” Tudor said. “I kind of blacked out. Pure happiness is the best way to explain it. Every time I relive it in my head it’s always in slow motion. Running from the dugout out towards the mound was such a surreal moment for me. All I cared about was making it out to the field to celebrate with all the players that had given me such a special year.”

A 2020 graduate of Tennessee High, Tudor played a behind the scenes role for the Volunteers and wasn’t the only member of his family to do so.

Lance’s younger brother, Logan Tudor, was on the six-man staff of managers that also included Ryan Ratcliff, Guy Roberts, Freddy Hartzell and Cole Palmer.

“I was his boss in a way,” Lance Tudor said with a laugh. “Logan was a freshman this year and his responsibilities were mostly the same as everyone else. Each of us as managers kind of specialized in our own things, but overall, we all had very similar responsibilities. Freshmen managers arguably do more than the upperclassmen mangers just because they have to earn their stripes in a way. Our three younger managers definitely earned their spot this year.”

What responsibilities does the job require?

“Our duties included things like setting up and taking down the practice and pregame set-ups,” Tudor said. “Laundry, keeping up with equipment inventory, packing equipment for travel, facility upkeep, helping run practice, etcetera.”

There’s not much glory in such a position, but Tudor was grateful for his gig working with college baseball’s best team.

“Absolutely unreal,” Tudor said. “I couldn’t have asked for a better group of guys to spend my last year with. National championship or not, I will always be grateful for this group of guys and the memories they gave me to hold on to for the rest of my life. Winning it all was just the cherry on top.”

A pitcher at Tennessee High and also a reliable wide receiver for the Vikings on the football field, Tudor ended up working with UT’s program thanks to some good ol’ ambition.

“When I knew my baseball career was coming to an end as a player, I really wanted to find a way to stay involved,” Tudor said. “I had finally made my decision to become a Vol coming into my freshman year and given that I had no connection to Tennessee, I went online and found every coach’s email address.

“I reached out over the summer to each coach explaining that I wanted to help the team anyway I could. A few of them got back to me saying that I should contact them again once I got on campus in the fall. The funniest response I received was from Coach [Tony] Vitello. He responded to me and told me that the best thing I could do was to send him some videos and he would get around to looking at what I had to offer to the team. I quickly realized he assumed I wanted to be a player. With a quick response, I explained that I wasn’t looking to extend my playing career and that I just wanted to join the staff as an equipment manager. I eventually made it on campus in the fall, met the coaches, and joined the staff as an equipment manager.”

Of course, the Tudor brothers were among several connections the 2024 Volunteers had to the area.

Outfielder Colby Backus is a Daniel Boone High School graduate and hit .387 with five home runs and 12 RBIs in a backup role for the Volunteers.

He appeared in UT’s College World Series win over North Carolina and became the first dude who attended a local high school to play for the College World Series champion since Matthew Beaird (Science Hill) did so for Coastal Carolina in 2016. Backus is now playing for the Appalachian League’s Johnson City Doughboys.

“Colby has been great,” Tudor said. “After beginning his career at Walters State [Community College], he came to Knoxville on a visit. Seeing him on campus just felt right. When I found out he was transferring to Tennessee I was stoked. I grew up playing against, and with, him in high school. Having a guy that I knew like that in the locker room was great for me. He was someone I could connect with and be comfortable around. Colby played such a huge part in this team’s success, and it’s been awesome to work with him these past couple of years.”

Kirby Connell was one of Tennessee’s most popular players with his noticeable facial hair and reliable relief pitching.

Connell graduated from high school in South Carolina but spent much of his youth in the Tri-Cities and makes it his home these days. He played in the clincher against Texas A&M and finished the season 4-1 with four saves and a 3.60 ERA.

“I can’t say enough good things about Kirby,” Tudor said. “From my first day as a Vol he’s been the most welcoming player. My first day of practice I came into the facility wearing a pair of old Tennessee High sweatpants. He immediately sparked up a conversation about the Tri-Cities where we began to talk about all the people we knew and grew up playing with. It was such a comfort to have a guy in the facility from the same place as me. Kirby is known by everyone, but he doesn’t let that get to him. He’s still the same guy day in and day out. Kirby is never too busy for a conversation or a